Gray Area
by Schizo Mania
Summary: The Titans encounter a secret order,supposedly dissolved centuries ago.Truths are revealed and secrets exposed as the Titans are drawn into a deadly hidden war. Slight Xover with Assassin's Creed, BBXRAE, rated for language and violence in later chapters
1. Chapter 1

Well...If anyone's gonna go all 'Teen Titans and Assassin's Creed? IMPOSSIBLE!' I can explain! This started from a conversation I had with my friend while we were bored during class. It went along the lines of

Me: So...Teen Titans and Assassin's Creed crossover?

Friend: Hmm...I still think Punisher would be better. But AC might just work...

Me: Hmm...TT, AC Crossover, with dimensional shit?

Friend: You just got Season 6. Too bad they canceled the damn show.

And that gave me an idea, you see. So...Enjoy, this is a pre-emptive apology for any OC-ness and stuff like that.

EDIT: Here's the edited version. Thanks to almostinsane for pointing out that the first version's fight scene was...Too off. And I also tweaked some things as well. Chapter 2 had to be rewritten as well. Oh well.

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans or Assassin's Creed

Chapter 1

"That them?" The man asked his companion as he blew out a puff of smoke. He held a photograph in his gloved hands. He placed the cigarette back into his mouth and took a deep breath. As much as he hated smoking, he had to admit that it kept him warm during the cold winter nights.

"Positive," The other man replied. He was much younger than the other man, no more than 25 years old. He pulled his jacket closer to his body to protect himself against the biting cold. The two men stood side by side on a deserted sidewalk, staring at the empty wall opposite.

The older man dropped the cigarette and crushed it under his heel. "So, which one? There are five of them, can't be all of them." He said, his voice calm and level. Despite the fact that he was only wearing a two-piece suit, he ignored the wind.

The young man shifted uncomfortably as he struggled to phrase his answer so that he would live to see another day. "Um..." He started, his throat suddenly feeling dry. "W-We were...Unable to locate the individual." He stammered out.

Noiselessly, he older man turned to face his subordinate. "So," He started, the calmness in his voice making the younger man even more nervous. "You had...Ten, was it? Ten men and yourself on this job, and," He held up the photo. "All you got was this? Mr. Emmett, I expected so much more from you."

Emmett gulped. "Sir, I-I had not enough time-The tower was too protected, w-we couldn't-" He stopped when he noticed his superior's cold gaze. "Please sir," He pleaded. "One more chance, that's all I ask, and we'll get it done! I promise you!"

The older man frowned. "If I recall, this assignment was your second chance." He smiled inwardly as Emmett paled significantly. "But," At that word, Emmett let out a sigh of relief. "I will allow you another chance."

"Yes sir!" Emmett said enthusiastically. "Anything, anything at all!"

The older man held up the photo again. He took out a lighter from his pocket and used it to set a corner of the photo on fire. It blackened and twisted as the flames began to spread. "Eliminate them. All of them."

"But...What about locating the individual?" Emmett asked, confused.

The older man chuckled. "Well, you were going to eliminate him after you located him, so this is technically the same thing." He explained. Then, his expression hardened. "But, if you should fail me...You should know what would happen."

Emmett gulped and nodded slowly.

"Good." The older man said, and with that, turned and left, leaving the young man alone on the sidewalk.

Up on a rooftop overlooking the sidewalk, two hooded figures overheard the exchange. They looked at each other worriedly. One of them shook her head.

"Right. It's not good." The other replied. His voice had hints of a Scottish accent.

The female just nodded her head in agreement. She pointed to the 'T' shaped tower in the distance and shrugged.

The male sighed and said, "I don't know...We should tell Hunter, see what he thinks." His companion nodded and turned to leave. With a running start, she jumped off the edge of the roof and landed on the adjacent rooftop.

The male sighed and said to himself, _Things just got complicated._

**VvVvV**

_Okay Beast Boy. _The Changeling said to himself as he walked down the hallway. _It's 9am, everyone's having breakfast and Raven's in her room. Now's the time. _He held a single red rose behind his back. He walked slowly, as if he was a criminal on his way to the gallows. Not at all like a changeling about to profess his love to a certain dark sorceress.

When they first met, Beast Boy immediately felt attracted to the mysterious goth girl, but he suppressed his emotions, believing that it was purely a physical attraction and that he would get over it. However, over time, he began to see past the girl's cold hard exterior and see the real, vulnerable Raven hidden underneath. At first, he once again thought his attraction was just a crush.

But, over time, he realised that his feelings of attraction was more than just that, it was love. However, at that time, he was certain that the feelings were not mutual. She constantly brought him down with sarcastic remarks or hurled him out of the Tower.

Now that he was 18 years old, he decided that he would man up and just admit his feelings to her, regardless of the results.

He stopped in front of a door with the name 'RAVEN' written in black bold letters on it. He took a deep breath and pushed any doubts he had into the darkest corner of his mind. He knocked on the door.

"What?" A voice snapped from within the room. Beast boy cringed. If he had interrupted her while she was reading, or worse, meditating, things could easily go wrong.

"I, um, I need to talk to you." Beast Boy replied. His doubts were resurfacing, but he pushed them back down.

"We're talking now."

Beast Boy sighed. If he wanted to walk away, that was the time. _No way, I've waited too long for this._ He took a deep breath and said, "I meant face-to-face...It's um...It's important."

The door opened after a short pause, revealing a less than pleased Raven standing in the door way, her hood down. "What's so important?" She asked, a hint of irritation in her voice.

He brought the rose out from behind his back and presented it to her. She raised an eyebrow and asked, "What's this about? Is this a prank?" She accused.

"No!" Beast Boy denied. "Uh...I just...Um..." He blushed, the red staining his cheeks a shade of brown. "I just wanted to give you this." He said meekly. _Idiot_. He scolded himself mentally.

"The reason being...?" Raven prompted. Though she wouldn't admit it, she hoped the changeling was going to say what she thought he was going to. Though she didn't show her...Affection as obviously as Beast Boy, the signs were there, whether it was always looking out for him during battles, or when she would give a slight smile at his jokes, just to amuse him.

"Uh..." Beast Boy started, unsure of what to say. "Well...I just wanted to get this off my chest. I mean...Uh..." He said. _Okay. List the reasons? Or not. Maybe I should just say it outright? But then it would sound like just a crush! But listing the reasons might buy time for my doubt to back me out..._

He sighed. _Just get it out and over with._ "I-I...Love you, Raven." He said and looked down to the floor, not wanting to face her rejection.

"Huh?" Came the unintelligible reply, a first for Raven.

"I know, I know...You probably don't feel the same way," Beast Boy said sadly. "But I just wanted to-Hey, huh?" He was interrupted by Raven suddenly throwing her arms around him and hugging him tightly as she finally processed what the changeling had said.

"Do you really mean that?." She asked, whispering into his ear.

"Yes, Raven. I love you, with all my heart...Of the largest animal I can turn into." Beast Boy replied and grinned at his little joke.

Raven smiled and whispered, "Then...I-I love you too."

Beast Boy smiled widely as he processed the words. _YES! _He screamed in joy mentally. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close.

And then, the Titan alarm rang, destroying their 'moment'.

The changeling groaned as Raven broke away. "We should get going, or Robin's going to give us another one of his 'punctuality lectures.'" She said as she headed towards the common room.

Beast Boy just grinned at her supposed joke and followed her.

**VvVvV**

The team assembled in the common room as they listened to Robins briefing. "We got a call from the local police. Apparently a group of strangers are causing general chaos downtown." He said. "But get this. They aren't taking anything. They're just making a mess."

"So there's nothing they're after?" Cyborg asked.

"Correct." Robin confirmed.

"Sounds like a trap," Raven commented. "Like a plan to draw us out."

"Raven is correct," Starfire agreed and nodded.

Robin paced around, deep in thought. "Well, it sounds like something Slade would do. We'll go and clear things up, then we'll go from there." The rest of the Titans nodded. "Alright then, let's go."

Raven and Starfire flew out of the Tower, with Beast Boy as a Pterodactyl behind them. Cyborg and Robin both took the T-Car.

"How long?" Cyborg asked halfway through the journey, grinning.

"Heh, I'd say half an hour." Robin replied, referring to how long they thought the battle was going to last.

Cyborg chuckled, "Come on man, the way you put it, sounded like those dudes were doing major damage, I'd say an hour at least."

"We've got a half-demon sorceress, a changeling, an alien princess with super powers and a martial arts expert. I think we can handle them." Robin countered.

"Wanna put money on it?" Cyborg dared, his grin not leaving his face.

"How mu-" Robin couldn't finish his sentence as Cyborg suddenly slammed on the brakes as they entered the destroyed city center, causing him to nearly slam headfirst into the dashboard. "What the hell?"

Cyborg didn't reply, but pointed outside. Beast Boy, now in human form, was lying on the ground, next to Raven and Starfire. It appeared as if they had just suddenly stopped flying and fell out of the sky.

Robin immediately opened the door and jumped out of the car. He rushed to Starfire's side and helped her up. "What happened? Are you okay? Why did you all stop flying?"

Starfire smiled, happy that Robin was around her. "I am fine, friend Robin, and as for why I ceased flight, I do not know." Beast Boy stood up and slowly helped Raven up. Then, he transformed into a falcon to get an aerial view.

At least, he tried to. "My powers!" He exclaimed in shock and worry. "It's-It's not working!"

Raven tried to move a piece of fallen debris with her powers, but it remained stationary. "Mine's not working as well. Something must be messing with our them."

"Well, what do we have here?" A rough voice caught their attention. All heads turned to the direction of the voice. A group of strangers, all clad in white and red metallic armor, faced them. They were all armed with a range of weapons. The one who spoke raised his sword. "Kill them," He ordered his team.

"Oh no you don't!" Cyborg shouted and transformed his arm into his trademark sonic cannon. He got off a shot, but the strangers easily scattered, avoiding it. One of them threw something at the titan. It was a spider shaped object and it clung on the Cyborg's chest plate. Suddenly, his sonic cannon reverted back to his arm.

"Like it? It jams all your offensive abilities." The one who threw the device sneered, his voice a cross between the squeakiness of Gizmo and the threatening tone of Slade. "As much as I liked it to just kill you, I want to have your blood on my hands."

Robin assessed the situation. They had no powers, they were back to just regular teens. He and Cyborg could hold their own in hand to hand combat, Starfire as well, with her superhuman strength. But Beast Boy and Raven were helpless without their powers. "What do you want?"

"We made it clear." The apparent leader of the group of strangers replied. "We want your lives."

"Why?" Beast Boy shouted. "Why us?"

"Orders are orders." Was the reply. Almost instantly, the group headed for the Titans, weapons drawn. Robin drew his bo staff, just in time to block a swing from a spear that would have certainly sliced his head clean off his shoulders. _These guys are serious!_ He lashed out with a kick, but his opponent easily dodged the attack and lunged with his blade, forcing Robin to jump back.

Cyborg was having an easier time. The spear did little damage to his metallic body parts, and due to his mechanical nature, he didn't get tired easily. However, his human parts were still vulnerable. He narrowly dodged a stab and attempted to grab the weapon, but the user expertly swung it out of the way. The mechanical teen swung a wild punch at his attacker, but his opponent blocked it expertly and pushed him back.

The attacker swung his blade at Starfire, narrowly missing her throat by were inches. "Please, why do you wish to fight us?" She asked and ducked to avoid a swing of the axe.

"We already told you," Her opponent said, his voice calm and level. "We want your lives. Orders are orders." He repeated the phrase.

"Who is it that is ordering you?" Starfire questioned as she jumped back to avoid another swing.

Her opponent gave a small smile. "Me to know, you to never find out."

Raven and Beast Boy did their best to stay hidden. They were unarmed, had no powers and were easy targets. "Come on, Rae, we gotta get out of here." Beast Boy urged her on as they stuck to the darker parts of the battle zone and attempted to sneak out.

"Tell me something I don't know," She replied in her usual monotone voice, not betraying a hint of emotion.

Beast Boy continued moving forward, but was suddenly stopped by one of the strangers standing in front of him, this one wielding a deadly spiked mace.

"Going somewhere?" He asked and swung his mace at the changeling's head. Beast Boy quickly ducked to avoid the fatal blow. Raven jumped back, the mace missing her by inches. "Not bad," The attacker complimented mockingly, then lashed out with a foot that caught Beast Boy in the stomach, knocking him back and into Raven.

Robin, Cyborg and Starfire were beginning to tire. No matter what they did, no matter how many hits they landed, the strangers never seemed to be affected or tire. Robin swung his staff, aiming for his opponent's head. He twisted his body to evade the blow and manage to get a hit on his opponent's stomach with his fist. He followed up with a kick to the face as his attacker doubled over.

However, his victory was short-lived, as another one of the strangers sneaked up behind him and caught him in a headlock, with his small sword positioned dangerously on his neck.

"Yo, you sure ain't gonna knife him!" Cyborg shouted, and quickly broke off from his fight and ran to Robin's aid, pulling the boy wonder's assailant off his back.\ roughly and throwing him on the ground.

Robin turned back and flashed him a smile. "Thanks," He said. Big mistake, as right when he turned back, his original opponent had recovered and slammed his spear into the boy wonder's stomach. Luckily he was much too close for the bladed tip to cut him open, but the wooden shaft still caused him to double over, and in the process, catch a knee in the face, causing him to fall back.

Cyborg had shifted his attention to both his original attacker and the one he threw on the ground. The one with the small sword had a maniacal grin on his face. "You know, I always wondered how you half-and-halves taste like." He said and licked his lips.

"You're insane." The mechanical teen heard his partner mutter as he threw one of his axes at him. Cyborg narrowly avoided the projectile.

"Whoah!" He exclaimed and was temporarily distracted. That gave the smaller attacker to jump on him, knocking him back, teeth bared. To the Titan's surprised, his teeth were jagged and sharp, like a dinosaur's.

"Mmm...Fresh...Meat..." He heard him utter with the same crazed smile. Cyborg's blood ran cold.

_Is this nutjob gonna eat me!?_

"Enough," Luckily, the carnivorous attacker was stopped by his partner. "You can have your meat. Once he's cold and dead." He twirled his sword and pointed the tip at Cyborg's neck. "Sorry, nothing personal." He said, nearly sadly. He was about to stab downwards, but then a green lion pounced on him.

"Get off me!" He yelled and punched the creature in the nose hard with his free hand. The creature immediately turned back into Beast Boy as he fell back onto the ground.

The attacker with the small sword was smacked into a wall by a rather angry Tamaranian.

"You will not hurt my friends!" She shouted in rage. If she had her powers, the young attacker would have been fried by over a hundred starbolts.

An arrow flew from the shadows of a building and pierced her arm. She fell to the ground with a scream, clutching her injured arm. The archer stepped out of the darkness, holding his crossbow. He had a disappointed look on his face. "Aimed for her heart," He grumbled. "Damn alien twitched." He shifted his attention to Raven. "Who wants her?" He asked and grinned.

"Just get it over with, you sickos." The one who knocked Beast Boy out said softly and threw a knife at the girl. Raven saw the knife and tried to jump out of the way, but it buried itself in her thigh. Like Starfire, she fell to the ground with an agonizing scream.

"Finish them," The leader of the strangers said calmly.

The axe user nodded and walked over to the nearest Titan, who happened to by Raven. He raised his axe and positioned it over her neck. "Nothing personal," He said with a devilish grin. "Just doing my job." He raised his axe over his head, ready to deal the finishing blow.

Suddenly, the axe fell out of his hands and onto the ground with a clang. His arms fell limply to his sides and his eyes widened, his mouth open like an 'O'.

"What's wrong? No guts?" The small sword user teased. "Then let me at her if he's too wimpy to do it." He sneered. Then, the axe user fell forward and they noticed the knife sticking out of his back.

"Assassin!" The leader shouted and they all looked to the building tops, temporarily forgetting about the Titans. "Show yourself!"

As if on cue, a figure leapt from the rooftops and landed on the other sword user. His left hand pressed him down by the shoulder, his right knee on his target's shin and his left foot on the ground. He raised his right hand, flicked his wrist upwards and a long, thin blade slid out from the vambrace he wore. Then, he quickly slammed the blade into his victim's neck.

All this happened in less than 30 seconds.

"If you so wish," The assassin said in a low voice. Then, he drew the shortsword sheathed at his right hip, gripping it tightly in his right hand. "Leave them alone." He said slowly. "And live. Stay, and your lives end here."

The leader roared with laughter. "One of you, against four of us!" He exclaimed. "Check your head, boy, it's not a fair fight."

"You're right." The assassin replied. "It's not fair unless it's ten to one." He said, taunting the strangers.

The leader, angered, charged forward, raising his sword. He swung it down, but it only cut through the air. The assassin side-stepped, slammed his blade into his assailant's neck pulled it out and, pointing the blade backwards, stabbed the small sword user in the stomach. Then, he swung around and sliced the same warrior's neck open.

The remaining two looked at each other, all not wanting to be the one to attack, so the assassin had to prompt them. He drew a knife and threw it at one of them. It missed and struck the ground behind, but it convinced the halberd user to charge. He closed the distance, swing his weapon wildly. The assassin expertly dodged all his swings and stabs until he had to perfect opening.

The halberd user, in his anger and fear, swung too hardly to the right, exposing his vulnerable stomach. The assassin didn't hesitate, he closed the distance and slammed his blade into the attacker's abdomen, pulled it out and stabbed him once again through the heart. He pushed the body roughly to the ground and threw another knife, catching the spear user in the stomach. Then, he closed the distance and slashed his victim's neck open.

Convinced the fight was over, he sheathed his weapons and ran to Starfire's side. Robin was up, but was clutching his stomach. He saw the assassin, and thinking it was one of their attackers, staggered as fast as he could to her and shouted, "Get away from her!" He raised his bo staff weakly.

"Calm down, I'm not against you," The assassin replied in a deadpan voice. Then, he looked up at Robin then down at Starfire. "Not too bad, didn't penetrate the bone," He said and lifted the unconscious Starfire's arm. "It can be treated. Get her to a medical facility at once."

Beast Boy came to at the moment and sat up, looking around while holding his head. Then, he spotted Raven, unconscious on the ground, a knife sticking out of her thigh. His eyes widened. "Raven!" He shouted, panicking and ran to her side. "Oh no," He whispered and tears threatened to fall. _How could I let this happen? If I had just stayed..._ He blamed himself.

His hand reached for the knife and grabbed it, about to pull it out. A hand on his wrist stopped him. "Don't," He said gently. "It'll make the bleeding worse." He explained. Beast Boy did not recognise the voice. He turned around to see who it was.

It was a teenager, roughly around their age. He wore a black longsleeve shirt with a white hoodie over it. A white leather chest plate, secured tightly by straps, covered his body. His arms were protected by white vambraces and white shoulder plates, both leather and secured by more straps and buckles. His hands were both covered by half gloves. A longsword was sheathed at his hip, held there by a belt. A shorter blade was sheathed on the other side.

White leather armor plate covered his thighs and calves, over his black combat trousers, which were tucked neatly into his white greaves. A belt around his waist held his throwing knives, ten in all. There were straps all over his body, holding his armor in place and securing his weapons on his body.

"Who are you?" Beast Boy asked, his voice full of suspiscion.

"A friend," The assassin answered cryptically. "Take this." He handed Beast Boy a note. "Read it somewhere safe and secure."

Beast Boy nodded dumbly and took the note.

"Alright, may I see her wound?" He asked and gestured to Raven's still form. It was impossible to see whether he was worried from under his hood. Beast Boy again nodded and stepped aside. The assassin knelt by Raven and ran his ghostly pale fingers deftly over the skin around her wound. He made sure he didn't disturb the knife as he examined the wound.

He stood up and shook his head. "It's bad, but not fatal. She might not be able to use that leg for the next few days, but only if you get it cleared up quickly." He said, his voice devoid of emotion, which would have been creepy, if not for that soft Scottish accent in his voice. "I'm done here." He said and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Beast Boy called after him.

"What is it?" He looked back and asked, irritated.

"What's your name?"

The assassin paused, as if deep in thought. Then, he said, "Phantom. Call me Phantom." With that, he ran straight towards a building, placed one foot on the wall and pushed himself upwards and grabbed the ledge of the roof. He pulled himself up onto it and fell from view.

Robin came over, carrying Starfire on his back. "Come on, get Raven." He said hurriedly. "We have to go."

Beast Boy nodded. "I fly faster, I'll get us back and see what I can do." He turned into a pterodactyl and held Raven gently in his claws and sped back to the Tower, his mind thinking the same thing over and over again throughout.

_Please be okay._

END

So...How was it? Good? Bad? Atrocious? And uh...If you got confused with the fight scenes, sorry about that, I'm not really good at writing those. My bad.

And I've already got chapter 2 written, but I just need someone to read this so I can improve on it. Any hints to help my writing would be greatly appreciated!

EDIT: Chapter 2 is rewritten.

~Schizo


	2. Chapter 2

Here's the edited version of chapter 2. As per normal now, I'm gonna reply to reviews first...

Darkrapture: Yes, I'm a dude. And thanks for the review! I have confidence issues, yes I do...But I'm getting over them!

Almostinsane: Thanks for the tip. Chapter 1's rewritten.

Chapter 2

The Titans crowded around in the medical bay. Usually, they left Cyborg alone to tend to the injured or mildly sick, but then today, there were two injured Titans, and he needed all the help he could get, and the two other boys were more than eager to supply it.

Cyborg cut the arrow head of the projectile off. "Alright, Rob, when I pull the thing out, I want you to put the cloth over it, you clear?" He asked.

"Yes!" Robin said impatiently. "Just do it!"

Cyborg nodded and pulled the arrow out. Thankfully, Starfire was still out cold, so she didn't feel the pain. Robin quickly placed the cloth that was damp with antiseptic over the wound to stop the bleeding. Cyborg handed him a roll of bandages which he held in his free hand. "Alright, I want you to bandage her wound. Just run the bandage around the wound a few times and tie it, got it?"

Robin nodded, and instantly placed the bandage over the cloth, still applying pressure and began to dress the wound.

The mechanical teen quickly moved to Raven, where Beast Boy was sitting anxiously by her bed. He immediately stood up when he saw Cyborg. "Will she be okay? How bad is it? What do I have to do?" He asked in rapid succession.

Cyborg decided not to comment on his sudden care for the empath and replied, "I don't know, I need to examine it, and nothing for now."

Beast Boy nodded as Cyborg leaned over the empath's thigh, examining the wound. "Well...It does look bad, damn near hit the femoral artery, but luckily it didn't." He said, then looked at Beast Boy. "Why isn't she healing herself?"

He shrugged. "I don't know," He said sadly.

Cyborg studied the still empath and stroked his chin. "Maybe if we remove the knife, she can heal herself?"

"But how do we remove it without it bleeding like crazy?" Beast Boy asked.

"Same way I did with Star. Get a cloth, soak it in antiseptic, get a roll of bandages and get back here." He instructed. Beast Boy nodded and sped away to do what he was told. He returned nearly seconds later.

"All right, now what?" He asked.

"I'm gonna pull the knife out. When I do, I want you to immediately put the cloth over the wound and apply pressure. Then, tie the bandage over the cloth."

Beast Boy nodded and did as he was told. As soon as Cyborg removed the knife, Beast Boy placed the cloth over Raven's wound with speed that would make Robin blush. Then, he gingerly placed the bandage over the cloth and made two rounds around the empath's thigh before tying the ends in a knot.

Suddenly, the girl's body was surrounded by a soft blue glow and she levitated a few inches off the bed. Beast Boy gave a sigh of relied. She was healing herself. He looked at Cyborg. "Thanks dude." He said and sat back in his chair.

"No problem, BB, she's like a lil' sis to me, ya know?" He said. "Well, mind watching over her? I gotta go check on Star."

Beast Boy nodded and Cyborg walked away. As soon as he was gone and out of hearing range, the changeling buried his face in his hands and started crying.

"Why?" He sobbed, keeping his voice low so the others wouldn't hear him. They wouldn't have, anyway, with them so preoccupied on Starfire. "I should've stayed with you. I should've." He said to himself and continued to cry into his hands.

_But then Cyborg would have died._ A little voice in his head said.

He looked up and wiped his eyes. It was right. But then, he wished he could have at least fought off Raven's attacker. No matter how he looked at it, it was his fault that Raven was wounded and lying in bed.

**VvVvV**

Phantom sighed. It was already night time and he still wasn't done patrolling. He just had one more area to cover, the central district. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop, all the while thinking back to the battle that had happened earlier that day.

He had seen the whole thing. He chose not to interfere and as a result, two Titans were injured. He had sugar-coated his explanations. In actual fact, both of the injured ones were hurt quite badly. He just didn't have the heart to say it out loud. Not because he was concerned of the two boy's feelings, no. He wasn't sure whether he could take rationalizing his inactivity.

He could have jumped down and saved them, he could have. But he didn't. "It was for the best," He murmured. "At least I caught them off guard." He said to himself. "If I jumped down earlier, I would've died. They were still on their guard and had plenty of strength."

Shaking his head, he pushed all those thoughts to a small corner in his head. Thinking about it won't change it. What happened, happened and nothing would change it.

But, he still couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt deep down.

"Help!" He heard the female scream. It came from the alley, just below him. He crept to the edge of the rooftop and looked down. A woman, probably blonde was cornered by three males, probably drunk.

"C'mon, dearie, just a bit of fun, eh?" One of them said in a slurred voice.

_Yep, obviously drunk._ Phantom confirmed and leapt down from the roof, in front of the woman and facing the three guys. He stood up, thinking his 182cm height would make them back off, avoiding bloodshed.

Unfortunately, the three males, in their drunken stupor, disregarded him. "Go away, boy. This has nothing to do with ya." One of the said, slurring the words.

"Pity," Phantom said in a completely emotionless voice. "A real pity," He said and stabbed one of the men with a throwing knife, pulled it out and threw it at another, catching him in the throat. Then, he looked up at the remaining male and smiled beneath his hood. "You're going home now, aren't you?" He suggested.

"Y-Yes, I-I am." The man stuttered, the events that just transpired knocking him out of his drunkenness.

"And you're never going to have your 'fun' again, are you?" Phantom continued, this time a grin in his voice.

The man nodded nervously. "Please don't kill me," He whimpered.

"This time, I won't." Phantom replied and pulled the knife out of the body. "But next time I catch you doing this, and you won't be as lucky." He added darkly, his voice nearly a growl. The man nodded and ran away quickly. He turned around to face the woman. "Imagine this never happened. Go home, don't tell anyone." He warned. "Or I will hunt you down and make you disappear."

Before the woman could say anything, he climbed up a wall and disappeared.

**VvVvV**

When the men he dispatched didn't return, Emmett grew nervous. He flexed his hands and a burst of green energy smashed a vase in the corner of his underground office. _Shit, shit, shit. How could they fuck this up? I'm so dead!_

He took deep breaths to calm himself. _Okay, don't panic. You can fix this._ He stood up. Gone was the casual wear. He was dressed in a white longsleeve shirt with a stylized red cross on it. He wore long white track pants with red lines running up the sides. Metallic armor protected his body, legs and arms. A sword was sheathed at his side.

It didn't take a genius to know that he wasn't completely human, whether it was the fact that he could manipulate and control a certain green form of energy, or the fact that he was deathly pale, his skin nearly the same colour as his white uniform.

However, even with his powers, or fighting skills, he was still scared stiff of his superior. He knew what happened to those who failed him. Their remains were never recovered. He walked around his office, thinking of a way to get himself out of trouble.

_Okay, I have to get rid of the Titans. My own men failed, for some reason. I'll need allies. And fast._ He snapped his fingers and looked up as he thought of an idea. He ran back to his desk and turned on his computer. _Their crime fighters. They must have a load of enemies wanting to get back at them!_

He cracked his fingers, then with practiced ease, he hacked into Jump City prison's database. His smile disappeared as he read through the entries for each adversary the Titans faced.

_What the hell! A fat kid with a spiffed up remote, some wannabe magician...The only one with potential is this Cinderblock guy, but he has a limited mental capacity! _Emmett sighed and placed his head on the table. He looked up again and began scrolling through the names.

A name with the term 'never caught' caught his eye. He clicked on the name and watched as the page loaded. His smile returned, larger than ever as he read through the details of his possible ally.

"Mr Slade Wilson, you're just the man I need..." He muttered, closed the web page and turned off the computer. He stood up and walked to a wall with a gigantic map of Jump City pinned on it. "Now...Where might you be hiding?" He asked out loud and narrowed his eyes as he scanned the map.

"Ah ha." He said with a smile and placed his finger on a deserted factory near the outskirts of the city. _If I was some elusive villain, that's where I would be._

He grabbed his cloak and walked out of the office. Time was short, and it was especially precious to him. He pulled the hood of his cloak up to hide his face and made sure his sword was hidden.

He walked through a large room. When he had a team, that was where they would have sat around and slacked, chatted or ate. _No, don't dwell on that. They're dead now._ He walked to the other end of the room and opened a door. Taking a deep breath, he climbed the stairs that would lead him to the outside world.

He opened the trapdoor at the top of the flight of stairs, breathing in the cool night air. _Night time already? Damn...Must have lost track of time._ He sighed and looked around to make sure no one was looking. Then, he stepped out fully and closed the trap door behind him.

Smiling, he began the long walk to his destination._ It'll be worth it._

**VvVvV**

The next morning was unusually quiet for the Titans. Cyborg and Beast Boy were not having the usual 'Tofu vs Meat' argument. Instead, they were both eating their breakfast peacefully, Beast Boy more like just pushing the food around.

Robin walked into the common room after his morning workout, which he dragged on longer, to distract himself from the events of the previous day.

Beast Boy placed the note on the table. "Hey, Rob, it slipped my mind yesterday, but that mysterious dude passed me this." He said. Robin nodded, took the note and unfolded it. He read the contents aloud.

"'Garfield Logan, meet us at warehouse 13 at 8pm. Come on the day you receive this note.'" He read. "They know your real name. Friends of yours?"

Beast Boy chuckled bitterly. "I'd know if I had friends like that. Don't know them." He replied.

"Well they seem to know you," Robin said and placed the note back on the table. "Question is, do we go?"

"Why don't we leave it to the Grass Stain to decide?" Cyborg suggested.

Robin nodded. "It's addressed to you, after all."

Beast Boy sighed. "I want to go, guys, but the problem is what about Rae and Star?" He asked. "Who's gonna watch over them?"

"I was going to call Titans East and see if they could spare someone to come over, so I think we've got that covered." Robin said. "I was gonna call them-"

He was interrupted by Cyborg. "You're gonna have to use the set-up in your room...The communication function of the main TV is down. I think I must've connected the wrong wires this morning when I tripped over them." He said. "It's gonna take a while, I'm not really sure which wires I tripped over."

Robin arced an eyebrow. "How early was it?"

"Around 4. Couldn't sleep." Cyborg replied. "And I was fully charged, so came down to play a bit of the gamestation."

Beast Boy got up. "I'm not hungry," He said and dumped his plate into the sink and left the common room, slouching slightly.

Cyborg sighed. "He's been like this since yesterday. I tried everything to get him back. Gamestation, comics, tofu, you name it, I've tried it."

"That's weird." Robin commented. "Anyway, I'm gonna go contact Titans East now. See you later."

"Later, dude."

**VvVvV**

Beast Boy sat by Raven's bed again, head looking down. "I don't know how many times I've said this, but I'm sorry," He said to her still form.

"I mean, Cyborg could've defended himself. It wasn't like that sword could've done much, anyway." He said. "I don't know why I chose him over you...Maybe it was habitual, but then again, I used to look out for you more, cause...You know, I love you and all..."

He sighed again. "Funny, huh?" He said and chuckled bitterly. "Never thought I'd be one to be so sad and depressed. That was more like your thing. No offense." He reached over and held her hand in his.

"I promise Rae, I'm gonna find a way to make myself stronger, to protect you, to keep you safe," He whispered. "I promise."

END

Sorry for the short chapter, but chapter three is already written and waiting to be edited, so I couldn't be bothered to move everything around.

Once more, reviews would be appreciated.

~Schizo(Who is still sorry for the short chapter)


	3. Chapter 3

And...Here's chapter 3. If you read the first and second chapter before, I suggest you go back to read them again if you didn't, I edited them.

Oh, and before I forget:

Normal: Narration

"Text" : Dialogue

_Italics _:Thought

_'Italics in inverted commas' _: Flashback

almostinsane: Sorry about the Slade bit. I had my friend help me with that. Guess ti turned out wrong. Hopefully the rewrite works. And no way will I let my OC's overshadow the Titans. I'm just focusing a bit more on them currently to build their personalities and traits. Otherwise I could just do with a rock.

Darkrapture: Sounds like a good idea, but I'm still in the brainstorming area, I'll shelve it for now. Thanks!

Chapter 3

"Man, this place gives me the creeps." Cyborg said and shuddered as the Titans moved slowly through the corridor defined by two rows of boxes on either side in the warehouse. The Titans had decided to go to the meeting after Titans East decided to send Speedy and Aqualad over to fill in for Starfire and Raven. They had arrived merely hours after Robin's message. They were currently watching over the injured females back at the tower.

"You're telling me." Beast Boy added.

The three of them turned a corner and continued walking. All of them were ill at ease. The endless number of crates stacked on one another, coupled with the near total darkness made the whole warehouse a possible ambush point.

Robin had his hand near his utility belt at all times, and his eyes darted around, trying to see through the darkness. A shadow that darted from crate to crate in the distance caught his attention. "Stop!" He ordered his team. "I saw something."

"You sure? Could just be the darkness, you know?" Cyborg suggested.

"No, I'm sure I saw something." Robin shot back. Then, he shouted, "Who's there? Show yourself!"

Suddenly, someone landed behind the Titans and cleared his throat, catching their attention and making them turn around swiftly. "You got your wish." He said in a familiar voice. "Hello there, Titans. Wasn't expecting you."

"Phantom?" Beast Boy asked, not exactly surprised but still slightly startled.

"You know him?" Cyborg asked and raised an eyebrow.

"Yesterday, after the fight, he was the one that kicked those guys butts. And he also helped check Raven's injury." Beast Boy explained.

"And Starfire's." Robin added, remembering the events of the day before.

The figure nodded and stepped closer. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at them. "State your purpose." He said flatly. He was dressed in the same uniform he had worn the previous day.

"Don't you know what's in the note you gave us?" Robin asked, suddenly tensing up.

The assassin took a few more steps forward. He shook his head and said, "The leader gives out the note but doesn't tell me what's in it. It's a form of security." He explained. "Show me the note." He requested, but it sounded more like an order.

Beast Boy took out the note and passed it Phantom. The assassin read it and nodded. "Everything checks out, follow me." He said. Without waiting for a reply, he pushed past the Titans and moved down the corridor of boxes. The three Titans looked at each other and each shrugged and followed Phantom.

"Where are we going?" Beast Boy asked. "And what's with this maze?"

Phantom didn't reply. He lead the Titans down a series of twists and turns. Then, he stopped in front of a brick wall that looked horribly out of place from all the metal of the warehouse. He turned around and faced the Titans. "What you're about to see, you better not tell anyone. Or we will hunt all of you down." He said in his eerily flat voice.

The Titans all shuddered. They had seen Phantom fight. If there were more people like him, and they were all after him, they were screwed. The assassin placed a hand on one of the bricks and lightly pressed it. The brick retracted and slowly the wall slid into a slot below, revealing an elevator that was big enough to fit a car.

"Nice..." Cyborg muttered as they stepped into the elevator. The wall slid back to it's original position, effectively hiding the elevator from any casual observer.

**VvVvV**

"So...You stay here?" Beast Boy asked Phantom, trying to strike up a conversation to ease the tense atmosphere.

"Where else?" Phantom replied, not looking at Beast Boy.

The silence continued for a few seconds, until the changeling asked another question. "How long did it take you to learn all your moves?"

This time, the assassin looked down at the changeling and gave a small smile. "Days to learn, years to perfect."

"So you must be pretty old, huh?"

"You could say that." Phantom replied as the elevator doors opened. They stepped out into a vast underground cave. The walls were of their natural brown colour, but the cavern was dug out perfectly, no uneven edges. Everywhere was smooth and at some places, shiny.

Robin gave a low whistle. It was impressive. After all, they must have dug this out without anyone noticing, and to have it so perfect...It was just simply impressive.

"Come on, this way." Phantom called to them and led them to the right of the cavern. To the Titans surprise, the cave was not circular as they had believed. It was carved in a crescent shape. After a few meters, they turned and entered another corridor.

"How long did it take you guys to build this place?" Robin asked.

Phantom shrugged. "I can't remember." He replied simply. Another set of doors opened with a quiet 'swish' at the other end of the corridor.

"You're so dead!" The group heard a voice shout. The Titans immediately tensed, thinking they were being ambushed.

"Relax," Phantom assured them. "It's just another one of us." As if on cue, another assassin, this one in red, walked down the hall, looking less than pleased.

"Seriously, control your damn sister. She just-" He stopped his rant when he noticed the Titans. He quickly pulled his hood up to hide his face. He was dressed similarly to Phantom, only that his clothes were red and his armor orange.

"Sorry," He mumbled and pulled up a bandana around his neck to cover his nose and mouth. With that, he turned around and quickly walked back the way he came.

"What was that all about?" Beast Boy asked.

"Standard protocol. We don't show our faces or tell out real names to strangers." Phantom replied and the group continued going down the hall. They stopped at another door. The assassin knocked on it softly. "Hey, they're here." He called.

"Come in," Said a voice with a mild Australian accent. Phantom placed pressed a button and the door slid open.

Another figure, also dressed similarly to Phantom, except everything he wore was white sat behind a metal desk. "Please, sit." He gestured to the five chairs in front of the desk. Phantom shook his head and leaned against one of the walls, his head down and eyes closed. He just wanted to take a short break.

The Titans all took a seat. "Why did you want to see us?" Robin asked almost as soon as he made contact with the chair.

"Aren't there five of you?" The assassin asked, sounding confused.

Before the Titans could answer, Phantom spoke up. "Two of them got injured yesterday during the fight. I thought I told you."

"Must've slipped my mind, then." The assassin in white murmured. Then, he turned back to Robin. "And to answer your question, we actually only needed Garfield here. But since you two are here, I guess there's no harm in you guess knowing as well." He looked back to Phantom. "You know, you don't have to be here."

"I know," Phantom replied. "But if I step out, I'll get bombarded by complaints from Tracker and Spectre about each other." He gave a slight chuckle. "I'd rather sit through this."

The assassin in white rolled his eyes. "Anyway, we just needed to talk to Garfield, as I said, but I think it's best you guys knew as well."

"What do you need to tell me?" Beast Boy asked impatiently. "And how do you know my real name?"

"We know everything in this city, heck, we know what's going on everywhere in the world. But that's beside the point," The white assassin said. "Well...Just get ready for a shock," He said slowly and looked around. "Like a really big shock."

"Just tell us already," Robin snapped.

"Okay..." The assassin said and raised his hands in mock defeat. "Garfield, I'm sorry to say this, but your parents were assassins, and by default. That makes you an assassin as well by default."

An awkward silence followed the sudden revelation. Phantom ran the words over and over again in his head. _Green kid's an assassin? Hmm...This should be interesting._ He smirked at his thoughts.

"Heh." Beast Boy chuckled nervously. "You're...You're joking, right?"

"Afraid not."

"But...But...My parents, they were researchers!" Beast Boy exclaimed, all the false happiness in his face gone. "They-They couldn't..."

"Perhaps this will explain it all." The assassin in white took out a document and slid it across a table. "We recovered it from one of the Templar hideouts."

Beast Boy took the file and read it slowly, taking in every word.

**TOP SECRET**

**AUTHORISED EYES ONLY: LEVEL 4 SECURITY**

**OBJECTIVE: To eliminate the Logan family. Consists of father, Mark Logan. Mother, Marie Logan, Child, Garfield Logan.**

**NOTE: Child is ex-sakutia victim. Cured by unknown means. No known side effects OTHER than green skin pigment.**

**PURPOSE: Father, Mark Logan is thought to have developed cure for poison #09-177 (A.K.A Sakutia), also suspected member of ASSASSIN order. Eliminate to protect our secrets.**

**KILL or CAPTURE the child to study his blood makeup and develop counter-cure. CAPTURE if opportunity presents itself, otherwise, KILL.**

**Mother, eliminate to prevent anyone from finding out.**

**PLAN: Crash an airplane into their boat. Info supplied by INFORMANT. Pilot is to bail out approximately 4 seconds BEFORE impact. Remember to ELIMINATE INFORMANT after mission. All involved and NOT part of TEMPLAR are to be KILLED.**

**DESTROY THIS DOCUMENT AFTER VIEWING. **

**DO NOT MAKE COPIES.**

**Non nobis domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam**

By the time he finished reading, Beast Boy was nearly in tears. "Why? Why do you tell me this now? WHY!?" He shouted at the assassin. His life looked as if it was falling apart from his view. First Raven got severely injured, then he finds out his father had a double life he never knew and that his parents didn't die in an accident, but were assassinated.

_So this is the kid, _Phantom thought.

"It's tradition that we wait till you are 18 before we reveal your assassin heritage. The same went for every one of us." The assassin in white replied calmly, unfazed by Beast Boy's outburst.

"Yea, you brought me here to tell me my hidden heritage, tell me that half my life was a lie, now what!?" Beast Boy shouted, still crying.

"We were going to ask you to join..." The assassin said.

"And I'm going to join you, why? If my dad wasn't an assassin, he would still be here! My parents would still be alive if not for your order!" Beast Boy shouted and tried to reach across to grab the assassin. Robin reacted quickly and pulled him back.

"Stop." He said sternly.

"Stop!? It's all their fault that my parents died!" Beast Boy practically screamed in the boy wonder's face.

"No," Phantom spoke up. "No, it's not."

"Oh? And why is that?" Beast Boy asked sarcastically and glared back to Phantom, his anger never fading from his voice, and his eyes full of rage.

"Like you, we gave him a choice. He could choose 'no', but he decided to join. He knew of the risks. We told him that much." Phantom explained. "And please, stop this. We know how it feels."

"Like hell you do!"

That comment sparked something in Phantom. He immediately rushed forward, grabbed Beast Boy by the collar and pulled him to his feet. "You're new, so I won't be too harsh. But next time, understand before you speak." He said darkly and roughly pushed Beast Boy into the chair. He returned to the wall and leaned against it.

"All our parents died," The assassin in white explained solemnly. "And believe me, they didn't have the pleasure of a death like your parents."

"Huh. I find that hard to believe." Beast Boy shot back skeptically, some of his anger gone due to Phantom's actions. In fact, a trace of fear replaced the heated anger.

The assassin in white narrowed his eyes. "Mine died after getting tortured in front of my very eyes and left for dead. I was lucky to escape with my life. They spent nearly a full day with mortal wounds before dying, while they were tied to a table." He said, his calm voice laced with controlled rage.

Beast Boy calmed down nearly instantly, his anger replaced by pity. "I...I'm sorry, I didn't.."

"Didn't know?" The assassin snarled. "Yea, well, next time, think before you act."

"If it's any consolation, I personally hunted down and eliminated all who were involved with your parent's death." Phantom added in an effort to console Beast Boy. "Except...One. But he's probably out of action now."

"So...Uh...How...Old are you guys?" Robin asked, trying to ease the atmosphere which was heavy with emotion.

"I'm 18 and a half. Phantom's 18." The assassin in white replied. "Why?"

"You killed someone when you were 8?" Cyborg exclaimed in both surprise and disgust. "Dude, that's...That's-" He was interrupted by Phantom.

"No!" The assassin denied. "It's...Complicated. We'll tell you next time," He continued. "If your friend agrees to join us." He quickly added.

All eyes turned back to Beast Boy. "If I join...Will I have to leave the Titans?" He asked.

"Nah, unless you want to." The assassin in white replied. "It's perfectly fine to be part of us and part of your team. Of course, that is if you don't mind if we go over to your tower for your training sessions or you coming over here."

Beast Boy looked at his team mates. Cyborg shrugged, as if saying, 'It's up to you.' Robin just nodded slightly. Beast Boy immediately thought back to his promise to Raven.

_'I promise Rae, I'm gonna find a way to make myself stronger, to protect you, to keep you safe.'_

And here he was, presented with the perfect opportunity. If he accepted, he would be trained to be just like Phantom, and he would be able to defend Raven better...He didn't need to think twice.

"I guess...I guess I don't have much choice, huh? I was born for this, if I was born for anything at all." Beast Boy said and looked up to the assassin in white. "So...Yea, I'll join..."

The assassin in white smiled. "Good. When do you wanna start your training?"

Beast Boy looked at Robin. "Whenever I'm free, I guess."

"Tomorrow's fine." Robin helped Beast Boy reply. He gave a slight smile to the changeling. Beast Boy gave a weak smile back.

"Tomorrow it is then. Phantom and Scavenger would head over to your tower to commence your training." The assassin said.

Beast Boy turned back to Phantom and he paled considerably. "You're my trainer?" He asked in a small voice. If he brought whatever he did in the battlefield over to training, the changeling had reason to fear for his life.

"Relax, I won't be too harsh on you," Phantom replied and then grinned devilishly. "...Much." He added.

"So...Now what?" The changeling gulped, turned back to the assassin leader and asked.

"You might wanna visit the armory." The assassin said. He looked back to Beast Boy. "We've got something for you there." He said and winked. Then, he looked up and nodded to Phantom.

The addressed assassin nodded back and led the Titans out of the office.

**VvVvV**

Meanwhile, in a deserted factory in the outskirts of the city, Emmett sneaked around, trying to locate Slade. _Maybe he isn't here..._ He thought bitterly and turned to leave. Suddenly, a slade-bot jumped down from above and landed in front of him. Emmett snorted and drew his sword.

He closed the distance rapidly and impaled the robot. He pulled his sword out and spat on the remains. "Pathetic," He muttered. He was about to sheathe his blade, but a low, grinding, mechanical sound from behind him stopped him.

Slowly, he turned around.

And saw nearly a hundred slade-bots staring him down. Emmett smiled evilly. Things were looking up. He charged into the bots, hacking and slashing with his blade, felling bot after bot with ease.

"Come on, Slade! Stop hiding!" He shouted and stabbed a bot in the chest, turned it sideways and slashed outwards, catching another in the side. "Stop hiding behind your contraptions and fight like a man!" He turned his blade around and stabbed another bot that tried to sneak up behind him. He pulled it out and swung it back around, slashing another bot in the process.

"Well, who do we have here?" A calm voice asked. Emmett looked to his left and saw Slade standing calmly in the middle of a dozen slade-bot remains. He held a long metallic pole in his hands.

"Sorry about the mess," Emmett replied. "Call off your bots. I'm not here to fight. I have a preposition for you."

"Hmm...And what might that preposition be?" Slade questioned. He still didn't trust the young man.

Emmett smiled. "Let's say it'll get rid of your Teen Titans problem for good. You in or out?"

Slade took out a remote control and pressed a button. Immediately, all the surviving Slade-bots ceased combat and retreated, disappearing in the shadows. "We'll talk first. And see how I like your plan. I assume you have one?" He threw the pole aside and it hit the floor with a loud 'clang'.

"Oh yes, I have one. And I assure you, you'll like it." Emmett replied with a sly smile and sheathed his sword.

"And what might that plan be?" Slade asked. "And why would you, a complete stranger want the Titans out of the picture?"

"The organisation I work for wants them dead. I have nothing against them. I'm just doing my job." Emmett replied calmly and sheathed his sword. "And as for the plan, you just have to capture them."

Slade chuckled bitterly. "I assume you have done your research. You would know that I have tried multiple times. And all of them failed. I tried to turn two of them into my apprentice. One managed to break free while the other rebelled." He decided to leave out the fact that Terra actually killed him, as explaining how he came back from the dead would have taken up too much time.

"We'll help you." Emmett said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Slade smiled beneath his mask. Of course he didn't trust the young man. But then he claimed to be able to bring the Titans to their knees, and after all, he could use a new henchman..."And what exactly is your help?" He asked.

Emmett sighed and reached into his track pants pocket and took out a small crystal. He deposited a small amount of his green energy into the crystal and threw it over to Slade. "Catch," He said. The masked villain caught it with ease. "Break it, and the Titans will be powerless, 'cept of course for the half-robot and traffic light kid."

Slade knew who he was referring to. He looked at the crystal in his hands. He would have it scanned and studied thoroughly later. For now, he just had to act as if he was going along with the newcomer's 'plan'. "I can take care of them,"

"Good," Emmett replied and smiled. "We got a deal?" He asked, took a few steps forward and extended his hand.

_So trusting. It shall be his downfall._ Slade thought and chuckled mentally. If he played his cards right, he would have a new apprentice, one stronger than ever. Then, Jump City will be under his rule. "Deal." He said and shook Emmett's hand.

END

So..How do you think? Did I get Slade right, like just around there? Cause I really wanna get his personality right.

And once again, Reviews would be-

Ack, you know already.

~Schizo


	4. Chapter 4

Two chapters in one day? Yup. I had this written out already, just needed some minor changes, thankfully.

So I present thee: Gray Area, Chapter 4!

Note: Edited it.

Chapter 4

"Here we are," Phantom said and opened another door. The assassin in red looked up and saw them.

"Oh, hey," He said casually and maneuvered around the various weapons on stands, careful not to brush against any of the sharp and deadly objects. "Tracker," He introduced. "And...Robin, Cyborg and Beast Boy, yea?" He said and pointed to each of the Titans. His voice had a slight eastern european accent. "What happened to the other two of you?"

"They're injured and back at the Tower resting. " Robin replied. "Your leader said that there was something for Beast Boy."

The red assassin nodded and walked into the armory. "Come on in, don't touch anything. Not accountable for any loss in limps or appendage." He said jokingly.

"No kidding," The Titans heard Phantom mumble. Robin looked in awe at all the weapons. There were swords, spears, maces...They all looked like something from a story, but at the same time looked futuristic.

"What are your real names?" Beast Boy asked.

"We'll tell you sometime, maybe." Tracker replied. "It'll be a case of 'if you can pronounce it, you can use it.'" He glanced back and saw a look of confusion on the Titan's faces. "We all have eastern european names."

Phantom brought up the rear, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his pants. _Can't believe I have to train that green kid._ He watched as Beast Boy kept trying to touch the weapons, only to be stopped roughly by the half-robot.

"I'm not gonna make you a robotic finger, dude. I have the half-robot thing down already." He said. Beast Boy's face dropped.

"Come on, man, I wasn't going to feel the blade, I just wanna-" He started.

"These weapons are sharp and dangerous. Don't touch them. Seriously." Tracker interrupted him.

"Fine," Beast Boy grumbled.

Phantom grinned and said, "Besides, you're gonna get your own weapon to play with, now that you're one of us."

"How do you know?" Robin asked, surprised. There was certainly not enough time for a message to be sent here from the office.

Tracker chuckled. "Why else would you guys be here?" He asked. Robin nodded and mentally scolded himself. He should have known.

"And...We're here." Tracker announced and stopped in front of a small closet. He slid the door open, revealing an assassin's uniform, this one coloured forest green for the clothes and a darker green for the armor. "This is just the standard...You can put whatever you want over it, even if it makes you look like a bondage freak like Phantom over there."

"The straps are there for a reason!" Phantom shot back.

"Whatever, dude, say...Who's your mistress?" Tracker teased.

"Huh. At least I get some," Phantom shot back and smirked. The Titans were staring wide-eyed at the two assassin's argument.

Tracker's eyes narrowed. "You get the last laugh...For now." He said darkly. Then, he turned to the Titans. "Uh...Sorry for the..Sexual content. We've been alone for a bit too long, you know?"

"No worries, dude," Beast Boy said lightly. "It's not like we've never heard those words before."

"Say, Garfield, you wanna try that on so I can get your other stuff?" He asked and walked away to get the other stuff, such as weapons and armor.

Beast Boy nodded eagerly and took the uniform from the stand and threw it over his Doom Patrol costume. The material felt extremely light and soft to the touch, so much that he doubted their protection value.

Phantom saw the doubt in his eyes. "Don't worry about it," He assured him. "It's made of a special material, assassin secret. Light, but bloody strong."

"Uh huh..." Beast Boy nodded dumbly.

Robin stepped closer to Cyborg and whispered, "Hey, Cy, think you can scan that thing?"

"I can try," Cyborg replied, keeping his voice low.

"Don't bother," Tracker laughed. He returned with a few weapons in his hands. "I can tell you right now that armor can deflect a slash from a sword easy. But stabs are different. One stab and-" He placed the weapons on a table. "-You're done." He saw Beast Boy's face pale significantly.

"But," Phantom added hurriedly, "That's why you've got your leather armor. It's actually a sheet of thin metal between two pieces of leather, but the metal only helps marginally." Quickly, he helped secure the armor on Beast Boy. "Still, after your training, you'll probably never get hit."

"Will my powers-Oof!" Beast Boy started, but Phantom suddenly tightened the chest plate too much, knocking the breath out of his lungs.

"Sorry 'bout that." Phantom mumbled and loosened it slightly.

Beast Boy took a deep breath. "Anyway, will my powers work with these clothes, I mean, when I transform it won't...Tear or anything, right?"

"Oh, don't sweat it." Tracker said dismissively. "These uniforms were meant to work with our powers." He said and grinned. "It'll transform with you. The weapons as well."

"You guys have powers?" Robin asked and raised an eyebrow.

"Huh? Hunter didn't tell you?" Tracker asked, confused. He looked to Phantom. He merely shook his head.

"Tell us what?" Cyborg asked. "And who's Hunter?"

"The guy you just met." Phantom explained. He looked at Tracker and arched an eyebrow. "So?" He mouthed.

Tracker looked back at Phantom uncomfortably. He shrugged. "You tell," Tracker mouthed. Phantom rolled his eyes and stood up after securing Beast Boy's leg armor.

"We're...How do you put it...We're not totally human." Phantom said uncertainly. Robin was about to speak, but then he said, "Shut up until we finish."

"All of us here? Our parents were the same mix. One was human, the other a..." He looked to Phantom again. "Tell them?" He mouthed. Phantom nodded. "Dimension Master."

"What are Dimension Masters?" Robin asked.

"Think of them as the United Nations of dimensions. We're peacekeepers and guardians." Tracker explained. "Our Dimension Master half is what gives us our unnaturally long lives. I mean...I'm 17 in our time...But in yours...I'm actually over a thousand years old."

"So you could we're immortal, seeing as we can live to over a million years old in your time." Phantom said, almost business like. "But being a Dimension Master gives us...Certain gifts."

Tracker nodded in agreement and snapped his fingers. Immediately a flame sprung to life on the tip of his index finger. Then, it disappeared. "I can control, manipulate and create fire." He grinned. "Hot, eh?"

Phantom rolled his eyes and said, "Heh, I can do better." He suddenly turned completely black and melted into the ground. A split second later, before anyone could react, he reappeared behind the Titans. "Shadow. I control shadow."

An awkward silence filled the room.

"Uh..." Beast Boy broke the silence. "How come...When you fought," He addressed Phantom. "You never used your powers?"

The assassin chuckled. "Why would I? They can easily negate my powers...So nothing like old fashioned style fighting."

Another awkward silence. "Look," Tracker said, obviously irritated. "Does us being only half-human bother you guys so much?" He accused bitterly. "Cause we've put up with this bullshit for nearly our whole lives, and I'm sick of it."

"No, not at all!" Robin said quickly, not wanting to anger the assassin.

"I'm half-human too, man," Cyborg said with a smile. "I mean, it's nothing to be ashamed of. Especially for you. You at least look human enough."

Tracked gave a slight smile. "I'm sorry. I guess it's just that I don't like people discriminating against us because of this." He looked up at Cyborg. "I mean, we're the only assassins in the whole order that's like this, so it's common for us to be treated differently."

"Like how?" Robin asked.

"Insults, accusations of us having unfair advantages, to name a few." Phantom replied nonchalantly. "Not that I cared, I knew I never used my powers as long as it was assassin matters, so why should I?"

Tracker sighed and said, "Anyway, let's drop that for now. We'll explain next time, if possible." He turned back to Beast Boy. "Alright, green dude. This is your weapon." He handed him a warhammer. "Grip it tight, don't drop it." Beast Boy took the weapon.

And immediately fell forward. "Geez, you didn't tell me it was this heavy!"

"It is?" Tracker asked, puzzled and took the hammer from Beast Boy's hands. He swung it in a small arc with ease. "Maybe it's just because you've got no muscles." He teased.

"Yea, BB, maybe you should eat meat!" Cyborg added and laughed, he couldn't resist.

"Shut up," Beast Boy mumbled. He stood up and posed in front of his two friends. "How do I look so far?"

Tracker walked behind him and pulled his hood up before walking off to find another weapon.

"Swish," Robin commented. "Makes you look threatening and deadly." He nodded his approval.

Cyborg gave a low whistle. "You look like a green, male version of Rae." Beast Boy frowned inwards at the mention of her name. It just reminded him of what a failure he thought he was.

"Thanks, guys," He said with a false smile.

By that time, Tracker returned and passed another hammer to Beast Boy. It was slender and looked less deadly as compared to the previous weapon. "This is the lightest thing that can kill I have." Beast Boy took it. And the assassin was right, it was extremely light. He could swing it with ease.

"Awesome," That was all he could say.

Phantom handed him a deadly curved shortsword.. "This goes wherever you feel you can draw it at a moments notice." He explained. "You point out where, we'll strap them in." Tracker already began strapping the hammer to Beast Boy's hip.

"Remember that the head is facing down, so just grab the shaft-" Tracker said then stopped himself when he saw Phantom grinning like a jackass under the hood. "...Okay, that came out wrong...Just remember not to pull it out too roughly, or the straps will come undone."

"Got it." The changeling said. Robin and Cyborg tried not to break out in laughter at Tracker's 'slip of the tongue'.

"Okay...I'm gonna secure your short blade to your back. Just grab the hilt and pull it down." Phantom said, sheathed the blade and began strapping it onto Beast Boy's back. "Tracker, get the knife belt."

The red assassin slipped a belt containing 10 throwing knives, five on each side, around Beast Boy's waist and secured it tightly.

"Well...We're done." Phantom said. Beast Boy took a small step forward. He felt great! As if the weapons and armor gave him confidence he never knew he had.

"Oh, flick your wrist upwards." Tracker said. Beast Boy nodded and did so.

A long thin blade instantly extended from the bracer he wore, similar to the one Phantom used to kill one of their attackers. Robin and Cyborg flinched at the sudden movement. Even Beast Boy was shocked. Tracker chuckled. "Hidden blade. Really nifty. Just uh...Don't impale your hand...Cause that's bad." He explained.

"You're good to go, mate," Phantom said. "You look like one of us. Without the training, of course. I'll lead you guys back out. You can meet the team next time...Maybe when there's trouble, we'll show our faces."

Suddenly, an alarm rang out. It wasn't as loud as the one in Titans Tower, but it was extremely high pitched, probably designed to wake anyone sleeping up. "God!" Tracker shouted. "And here I was thinking I could hit the hay early."

"Eh, since when did we ever sleep early?" Phantom asked rhetorically. He turned to the Titans. "You guys wanna tag along? You could see how we operate."

"Sure," Robin said. "And we could help out as well."

"Great, Let's get to the briefing room, then."

**VvVvV**

It turned out that the briefing room was just an extension to their version of the common room, located in the center of their vaguely 'A' shaped home, without the line in the center of the upside down 'V'. Another large cavern was where it was. And two passageways led to the vaguely upside down 'V' shaped briefing room.

"Hey guys, sorry we're late," Tracker muttered as he entered. "Busy setting the recruit up."

"No worries," Hunter, the one in white, said. They were dressed all similarly, just minor changes, such as throwing knives sheathed on the shoulder instead of the waist or knives sheathed even in the boots. "Anyway, you guys can get to introductions later, we've got another alert."

"What is it this time?" One of the assassins complained, this one a female. She was dressed in blue clothes with green armor.

"Robbery on 6th avenue," Hunter explained. "Suspected Templar work. Makes sense, the Titans just got attacked by them yesterday, so there's definitely Templar activity in this city."

"Wait," Robin interrupted. "Those things that attacked us...Were Templars? Aren't they the good guys?"

The assassins all stiffened at his words. "Depends on how you perceive the term 'Good Guys'" Hunter said in a low voice.

"Huh?" Robin asked, confused.

"Shush," Phantom whispered. "I'll explain when I have the time." The answer seemed to satisfy Robin, as he remained silent.

"Well, let's go, then!" The female assassin exclaimed. She had a slight Scottish accent, similar to Phantom's. "Can't wait to kick their asses!"

Phantom snickered. "Only an idiot rushes in headfirst without studying the enemy." He remarked.

"Says you, bro." The assassin replied and stuck her tongue out at her older brother.

Phantom just shook his head and chuckled to himself.

"Spectre, Phantom, quiet. No time for sibling rivalry." Hunter chided them. Then he addressed all of them. "We'll head out, investigate, and maybe bop some Templar heads, understood?"

"Got it."

"Well..Get to it, then." Hunter said and the assassins one by one left the briefing room. They all headed for the elevator. The ride up was relatively fast, but Hunter managed to put a plan together.

"Alright, I'm with Spectre, Tracker with Scavenger." He assigned the assassins to their teams. "Ranger and Phantom, take the Titans." The doors opened and they rushed out. The assassins all climbed the crates with ease and sprinted out of sight.

Phantom quickly led them through the maze of crates and out of the warehouse. "Use whatever mode of transportation, we'll meet you there." Phantom ordered. With that, he and the other assassin sprinted off into the distance.

"We'll take the T-Car." Robin decided. "If those guys can negate powers as well, falling from the sky's gonna hurt." He said, referring specifically to Beast Boy.

The two other boys nodded and piled into the T-car, Cyborg at the drivers seat, Robin beside him and Beast Boy alone in the back.

"So BB, how do you feel?" Robin asked without looking back.

"I'm okay," The changeling replied. "I mean, finding out that my parents were actually murdered hurt..A lot." He paused and looked down.

"But...I guess the best way to honour them is to take up my dad's role." Beast Boy finished. "And I do get this fancy uniform as an added bonus." He grinned. _And now I can protect Raven from those Templar bastards. _He added mentally.

"You trust them?" Robin asked.

"Sort of...I mean, if they wanted to kill us or anything, they could have done it sooner..." Beast Boy replied and pointed out.

Cyborg stopped the car. "We're here." They heard the sound of metal clashing against metal not far from their position. "And I'm guessing the party just started." The Titans exited the vehicle and ran towards the battle.

They saw several armored figures, just like the ones that attacked them. Only this time, they were the ones being beaten. Phantom parried a chop that would have cleaved him in half with his longsword, then stepped forward and punched the Templar in the face, forcing him to stagger back. Before he had time to recover, Phantom stabbed him in the stomach, turned the blade sideways and slashed outwards, nearly halving his enemy.

He spotted the Titans. "Hey! Feel free to join!" He shouted to them as he decapitated a Templar. "They can't jam your powers!" He continued, then swung around to block another blow from an axe.

Cyborg morphed his arm into his trademark sonic cannon and blasted the nearest Templar into a wall. The impact was so great it left a dent in the concrete structure. "Booyah!" He shouted happily. "Now we're talking!" An arrow struck the barely conscious Templar in the neck, ending his life.

Another arrow flew through the air and struck one Templar in the head. Phantom's partner readied another arrow, pulled it back as much as she could and took careful aim at her next victim before releasing her projectile.

Beast Boy had completely forgotten that he had weapons and quickly morphed into a gorilla and pummeled several Templars with rapid punches. And with fists that big, the lucky ones were knocked out cold. The unlucky ones suffered broken bones. Phantom moved in quickly and and finished off those that were unconscious.

One of the Templars attempted to sneak up behind Robin and place a dagger in his back, but then a spear stopped him cold. It stabbed him in the back, penetrating his heart. The assassin pulled the spear out and the body fell to the ground. Robin heard the body hit the ground and quickly glanced back. He saw the assassin with the bloody spear and said, "Thanks!"

"No prob!" The assassin shouted back. Turning around, she blocked a chop from a sword with her spear. Using both hands, she pushed back and ran her enemy through with the spear.

Robin punched one of the Templars in the face, breaking the nose and knocking him back. He followed up with a quick smash to the chest with his staff and kicked him hard in the face, causing him to lose consciousness. Hunter quickly slammed his axe into the fallen Templar.

"We need one of them alive!" Hunter reminded them. Three Templars left. They had to be careful not to kill them all. He ducked under a swing from a mace and lashed out with his axe, the blade sinking into his attacker's knee, bringing him to his knees. The assassin stood up and slammed his axe into his victim's shoulder and pulled it out roughly.

Spectre stabbed both her swords into her target and slashed outwards with them. Her enemy only had time to try to catch his falling guts before he died. She smiled at her victory and spotted the last Templar trying to escape. She drew a throwing knife, aimed for his leg and threw the blade.

The knife flew straight and true, burying itself up to the hilt in her targets thigh. "Yes!" She shouted in victory and pumped a fist into the air.

"Nice," The assassin in brown remarked and the two girls high fived.

"Scavenger," Tracker called to her. The brown assassin turned to face him and he passed her a throwing knife. "Yours, I believe."

"Thanks," She said with a smile, took the blade and sheathed it.

Ranger, Phantom's partner, jumped down from her sniping post and rejoined the assassins. Her partner was busy dragging their prisoner to them.

"Scavenger, take care of the bodies." Hunter ordered.

The addressed assassin smiled. "You got it," She said and snapped her fingers. Almost instantly, the ground shifted and small fissures opened beneath the dead bodies, allowing them to fall in. Then, the fissures closed, and there was nearly no trace of a battle left, other than the broken walls and marks left from bladed weapons. Beast Boy was vaguely reminded of Terra, but then he pushed the thoughts back down. _No, I have someone else now. Terra was just a crush._

The Titans approached the assassins. "Hey...No offense, but did you guys have to kill them?" Robin asked. "I mean, prison would have been enough."

"Not for these guys," Scavenger replied and shook her head. "Put them in prison and by hook or crook, they'll break out." Her voice was the most normal of them all, without a trace of an accent. She collapsed her spear and clipped it to her belt.

"Oh, Garfield-" Tracker started.

"Dude, can you call me Beast Boy? Or at least Logan?" Beast Boy requested. "Garfield's a pretty stupid name."

Tracker nodded. "Okay then, Logan. Next time, remember you have weapons." He said and gave him a sly smile. "There's a reason we gave them to you."

Beast Boy chuckled nervously and scratched his head. "Eh hehe...I guess that never occurred to me."

Hunter turned to Phantom. "Prisoner secure?"

Phantom looked to his captive. He was bound with several ropes, and a tape gag over his mouth, making him unable to use his arms, legs or speak. He turned back to Hunter. "I think so." He replied with a grin.

"Good." Hunter said and nodded. "You bring him back to the hideout first, we'll meet you there." Phantom nodded, walked over to the prisoner and placed a hand on him. Immediately, they melted into the shadows and disappeared.

"Why don't you guys use your powers in combat?" Robin queried. "I mean...Yesterday they could jam our powers, so there was a reason, but today..." He trailed off.

"We use them in desperate situations only." Tracker explained. "I mean, why bother overexerting when smashing the faces in works?"

"Well...I think we better head back." Robin nodded and said. The three Titans started walking to the T-Car. "It's getting pretty late."

Hunter nodded. "Hey," Scavenger called after the Titans. They turned and faced her. "Mind if Phantom and I drop by tomorrow? Logan's training starts tomorrow." She explained.

"Sure." Robin replied.

"Kay then. See you guys tomorrow." Scavenger said and waved them goodbye.

None of them noticed the slade-bot recording the battle and the aftermath in the dark alley.

**VvVvV**

Slade studied the footage closely. _The assassins are strong, and they don't seem to rely on their powers...I'll need to get the Titans when they're not around...._

He smiled beneath the mask as he thought of the perfect plan. It was dreadfully simple, but if all went well, it would be foolproof and no one would know that the Titans were missing. He reached into his pocket and felt the crystal.He had it studied, and the young man was right. It was capable of negating abilities. And if concentrated enough, could hack and destroy even the strongest security systems. It wasn't power cancellation, it was more than that. It was just pure, disruption energy.

Slade once again smiled to himself. The newcomer had no idea what was about to transpire. He trusted Slade, that was his first mistake. Then he left, not bothering to oversee the mission. Second mistake. Yes, Slade was going to do his part, capture the Titans. Whatever happened after...

Well, the fun part was always anticipation, right?

**VvVvV**

"You failed me, Emmett," The young man's superior said gravely. "The changeling joined the assassins. You were too slow."

"I-I didn't expect the assassin to intervene! And I got help!" Emmett said pleadingly. Then, he just sighed and decided to accept whatever punishment he would be given. There was no point arguing with his superior. "I-I'm sorry, sir."

"Hmm..." His superior walked around the young man. "That mission is scrubbed, so you're off the hook. However, I have one thing for you to do. And you had better not muck this up, or I swear, I will kill you personally."

"What is it!? I'll do it!" Emmett exclaimed.

"The half-demon capture her. We need to study her abilities..." He said and looked down at his desk, strewn with photos. "Last time, she stopped Trigon, just in time for our dear friend Szakal (A/N: Pronounced Shakaal) to lock him back up in hell."

He looked up and his face cracked into a small grin. "Now, we have a plan...We're gonna bring him back, and-" He took out a golden orb from the desk drawer. It was covered in ornate designs and glistened in the light. "-We're going to make him work for us. Then, the universe will be ours to control."

Emmett paled significantly. "A-Are you sure? H-He's a Demon, and we swore to never use our Dimension Master powers to benefit the Templars-" He was stopped by his superior's hand gripping his throat.

"You will do as I say, or-" The superior said, eerily calm and his eyes flared red. "-I will kill you right now. I believe you know what to do."

"Yes sir, I'll get to it sir." Emmett squeaked.

"Good." He let the young man go. Emmett quickly made his way out of the underground office, clutching his throat.

The older man looked at the photos. The half-demon getting injured was...Unfortunate. But then it wasn't much of a problem. They just had to shift the battlefield to the Tower, and that wasn't that major a plan. Just needed a slight rewrite of battleplans.

He smiled as his eyes fell on Raven's photo. "Your father might be the current ruler of hell, but then, I can make him work for me." He said and held the golden orb again. "And then it will be everlasting peace."

He looked up from the photo and repeated the last two words. "Everlasting peace."

END

If you play Assassin's Creed, no prizes for guessing what that golden orb is. =P Anyway...Anything you guess wanna talk about on this? Anything? Then just leave a-

Everyone else: We know.

...Fine.

~Schizo


	5. Chapter 5

Replies to reviews:

spartan585: Thanks dude! It was kinda hard to not focus too much on my OC's, but I'm glad I got it right.

Darkrapture: I know that the Titans have something against killing...And I plan on using that in later chapters...Hehe...

Chapter 5

"Why am I stuck doing training duty?" Phantom grumbled as he and Scavenger leapt from rooftop to rooftop on their way to Titans Tower. The fastest route was of course by going through the streets, but then two teenagers in weird clothes, with weapons everywhere was definitely going to attract a lot of attention, so they decided to take the longer but safer rooftop route.

Scavenger easily kept up with her nimble partner. "Because no one else knows how you get your trainees to become the perfect, text-book approved assassin." She replied. "And besides," She said as she landed on another rooftop and grinned. "You know you love it."

Phantom didn't reply, he only grimaced as he felt the impact travel up his legs. Despite all his years as an assassin, he still wasn't completely used to the shock that went up his bones every time he landed. "Shouldn't be too far now," He stated and stood up. "We can take a short break, then continue on."

Immediately, Scavenger sat down hard on the concrete roof and lied down, staring at the clear blue sky. "Ever bothered to take a good look at the sky?" She asked dreamily. "I mean, it's so...Peaceful, you know?" She sat up, propping herself up with her elbows and looked at Phantom. He had an utterly deadpan look on his face. She sighed and laid back down. "Well, you should."

Phantom took a short glance at the sky above, then looked back at Scavenger. "I don't see anything we don't see everyday. Clouds, the colour blue, birds...Need I go on?" He said dryly.

The female assassin laughed and sat up. "So, when's our break over?"

"Now," Phantom said, slightly more harsh than he intended. "We don't have all the time in the world." Without waiting for a reply, he ran and jumped off the edge of the roof. Scavenger chuckled and shook her head before following suite.

_That's our Phantom. _She said to herself and grinned. She was the complete anti-thesis of Phantom. Where he was cold-hearted, harsh and anti-social, she was kind and extremely friendly. Their conflicting personalities were what usually instigated their arguments and fights, which, while not often, were usually explosive and sometimes violent.

And that was why they were paired together.

They balanced each other out, where Phantom might issue excessive punishment, Scavenger could easily overrule him. Where Scavenger would be too slack, Phantom would step in with his over-the-top strictness. They were the perfect team.

"Keep your damn eyes on the path!" Phantom shouted, breaking her out of her thoughts, just in time to see the brick wall she soon slammed into in mid-jump. She heard Phantom swear and say something about 'blind people' and how 'they could see better'. When her vision cleared, she was lying on the ground. She sat up and rubbed the back of her head. Phantom was beside her in an instant, dropping from the roof.

"You okay?" He asked and extended a hand. She took it and he pulled her to her feet. "Nothing broken, nothing hurt?"

"Just my pride," She replied and flashed a cheeky grin. "Thanks for the concern."

Phantom blushed slightly underneath his hood. "Nothing you wouldn't have done for me. Let's go." He said quickly. With that, he ran towards the wall and scaled it swiftly. Scavenger chuckled and followed.

**VvVvV**

Raven opened her eyes slowly. The first thing she noticed was that she wasn't somewhere red with flames all around, which meant she probably wasn't dead, unless hell decided to redecorate. It took a few seconds for her to realise she was in the infirmary of the Tower. She slowly sat up and removed the various sensors from her body. _What the hell happened?_ She asked herself and rubbed her temples, trying to recall the events after the battle.

Just then, Cyborg and Robin burst into the infirmary, both with concerned looks on their faces. A green hooded figure followed behind. Though his face was not visible due to the hood, Raven could tell from his body actions that he was nervous. _Must be one of our replacements, but who is he? I don't recognise him as a Titan..._

Neither of them noticed Raven sitting up in her bed, all three were too engrossed in the small screen on Cyborg's arm. "Shit, guys, this thing's goin' wild, says Raven's unresponsi-" The mechanical teen said frantically.

"Ahem," Raven cleared her throat. The three boys looked up and relaxed considerably.

"Damn girl, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" Cyborg said with a grin. "Good to see you're okay."

The green hooded figure didn't even hesitate. He immediately threw his arms around Raven and hugged her tightly. "Thank god you're okay!" He exclaimed in an all too familiar voice.

"Beast...Boy?" She asked and pushed him away lightly. He nodded and pulled the hood back, revealing his face and his trademark grin with the fang poking out. Raven suppressed her urge to laugh. "What are you wearing?" She asked in her usual monotone.

Beast Boy's grin disappeared. "Uh..." He struggled to think of the words to explain everything that happened from when she got hit by the knife, until when he joined the assassin order. His vocabulary was limited to whatever he read from comic books, and whatever he had heard from his TV shows.

Luckily, he was saved by the door. A soft alarm sounded from Cyborg's left arm. A panel opened and he took a look at the screen which displayed the view from the cameras positioned at the main doors of the Tower. "It's your assassin friends," He said. Raven's eyebrow shot up at the word 'assassin'. "I think you should go get them, Beast Boy. We'll explain things to Raven."

Beast Boy nodded, gave his girlfriend a quick kiss on the cheek, which caused her cheeks to redden, and darted out of the infirmary. Robin smirked at the display of affection, while Cyborg shelved it into his mental 'Beast Boy Blackmail' folder. "Since when were the two of you so close?" He teased.

Raven blushed. "I-It's nothing," She said. _Calm yourself! Why are you stuttering? It's not like it matters whether they know or not...Is it?_ She told herself. Cyborg was about to tease her again, but Robin stopped him.

"Teasing can wait," He said and smirked again. Raven shot him a death glare that wiped it off his face. "I think we should explain things to her first." Cyborg nodded and took a seat. Raven didn't say anything, just listening to what Robin had to say.

"Okay, it started after the battle, when you got hit in the leg with the knife-" Robin began, but was cut off rather rudely by Raven.

"I got hit by a knife?" She asked suddenly and looked at her own body. "Where?"

"Thigh." Cyborg informed her. "We got it out when we got to the infirmary, and you began to heal yourself, but I ain't too sure if you're okay to be on your feet. Just take a few steps around later and tell me if you feel any pain whatsoever."

Raven nodded and turned back to Robin. She gestured for him to continue.

"Then we were saved by this assassin person..." He continued, explaining in detail the events that transpired the day before.

**VvVvV**

Meanwhile, at the door, Beast Boy let his two trainers in. Scavenger gave a low whistle when they entered the spacious Tower. "This is a lot of unused space, man. We could fit so many things here," She commented. Phantom seemed unfazed and crossed his arms.

"Training. Now." He said sternly and emotionlessly.

"C'mon, Phantom." Scavenger said and elbowed him lightly in the ribs. "We're in his home, be nice. 'Sides, I really wanna take a look at this place."

Phantom shook his head. "We're here to train the kid, not to go on a tour." He replied.

"Would it help if I said please?" Scavenger asked pulled her hood down so he could see her pleading eyes. Her short dirty blonde hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail, save for a few strands that hung lazily in front of her eyes.

Phantom remained unmoved. "Did it help before?" He asked monotonously. Scavenger's face fell. He sighed and added, "But, I guess we could take a look at whatever we pass on our way to the training facility..." He turned to Beast Boy. "You do have one, right?"

"Yea..." Beast Boy replied. Something about the way the two assassins interacted reminded him of a couple he knew, but he couldn't out a finger on whom. "This way, come on." He said and led the assassins to the elevator that would bring them to the common room.

"So, you stay here?" Phantom asked during the elevator ride, echoing the changeling's very own question during his first visit to the assassin's hideout. He could hear a grin in the assassin's voice.

"Where else?" Beast Boy echoed Phantoms answer.

"You guys sure waste a whole lot of space, if you ask me." Scavenger said unhappily and folded her arms. "I mean, you only use the top bit of the 'T', so the vertical bit is just a gigantic elevator shaft?" She had a look of disgust on her face. "Even if you had an underground garage or basement, it's still wasting a lot of space."

Beast Boy shrugged nervously. "Uh...You're gonna have to bring it up to Cyborg..."

"I sure as hell will," Scavenger replied aggressively.

"Fucking basketcase." Phantom muttered. The female assassin flashed him a fierce look which he merely shrugged off. When Beast Boy wasn't looking, he gave her a small grin which said clearly, 'Nothing intended.' Scavenger smiled back and both blushed.

Beast Boy noticed the red cheeks of Scavenger and gave a wolf whistle. Both pairs of eyes turned on him, but he was unfazed. This was native ground: Teasing. "Tension much?" He asked with a cheeky grin. Scavenger quickly pulled her hood up while Phantom just rolled his eyes and turned back to face the elevator doors.

The lift came to a stop and the doors opened. Beast Boy led the assassins into the common room. "Nice," He heard Scavenger murmur. Phantom didn't say anything, he just looked around with a flat look on his face. Of course, his ever present hood didn't allow Beast Boy a clear look at his face, but the way he walked, the casual and relaxed gait, made it clear that he wasn't there to take a look at their amenities.

They reached the training room. Phantom crossed his arms and studied the place. "Well...I have to say, this place is impressive." He gave an approving nod as his eyes looked over every piece of equipment there was. "Not that it wasn't obvious. You guys have strength, not skill. 'Cept for your leader, of course." He walked over to the large empty space separated from the rest of the training room by red rope. It was used by the Titans for no-powers sparring matches, however rare they were.

Phantom climbed under the ropes and gestured for Beast Boy and Scavenger to follow. The assassins both drew their main weapons. Phantom, a sword, Scavenger, her collapsible spear. Both grinned and pointed their weapons at Beast Boy. "En garde." Scavenger said.

"Wait, what? Hey, GUYS!" Beast Boy manage to shout out before ducking to avoid a swing of the spear. _Damn! Are these lunatics trying to kill me!?_

"Quick reflexes, good." Phantom commented, then came down hard with a chop from his sword. "Don't worry, we're using our training weapons. They're blunt, but will hurt like hell if it hits you." Beast Boy jumped out of the way of the fake sword. "Look, you've got a weapon. Use it." Both assassins stopped their attacks and held their weapons by their sides.

"You sure?" Beast Boy asked uncertainly. He didn't want to accidentally injure, or possibly kill his trainers on day one. The hammer could do massive damage if the metallic head came in contact with any part of the lightly armored assassin's bodies.

Scavenger nodded. "The point of this is to see how much we have to teach you. Just give it your all. We can take it." She raised her spear and adopted a fighting stance. "Three seconds, dude." She warned and tightened her grip on her spear.

Beast Boy sighed and reluctantly drew his hammer and held it in front of him. Phantom nodded and quickly took a step forward and lashed out with his sword. Beast Boy instinctively raised his weapon to block the blow. It caused Phantom to stagger back, but then he was completely unaffected by the shock. He followed up with a stab, which made Beast Boy jump back.

He advanced, swinging his hammer wildly, but still refraining from using too much strength. Phantom easily evaded all the attacks, but didn't counter a single one of them. Beast Boy was puzzled. After seeing how the assassin fought, the changeling had expected some sort of counter. Risking getting hit, he glanced around, and noticed something was odd.

Scavenger was nowhere to be seen.

She had sneaked up behind Beast Boy and caught him in a headlock. "You lose," She whispered in his ear and let him go. The changeling staggered forward, rubbing his throat. He shot a glare at the two assassins.

"Unfair!" He croaked. "It's two on one."

"And by assassin standards, it's not fair unless it's ten to one," Phantom countered. "But, seeing as you're a newbie...I guess we can make an exception." He turned to Scavenger. "Mind sitting this one out?" He asked.

Scavenger nodded and stepped out of the ring. Phantom readied his blade. "Let's go," He said before charging forward, blade at the ready.

**VvVvV**

"So what you're saying is that Beast Boy discovered that his parents were members of this assassin order...And he joined them?" Raven asked, paraphrasing Robin's paragraphs long explanation into two simple lines.

"Uh...Basically...Yes." Robin said and scratched the back of his head. He glanced over to Starfire again. Her wound wasn't as bad as Raven's but she didn't have healing powers, so she took a longer time to recover. Cyborg was at her side, checking her vital signs.

"And he's currently in training?" Raven asked, her voice not betraying a hint of the worry she felt. Robin nodded dumbly. "Can I go see him? I need to talk to him." She got off the bed and threw her cloak over her shoulders.

Robin looked back at Cyborg. The mechanical teen looked at him and shrugged. "Don't see why not. I'll stay here to check on Star. Speedy and Aqualad should be back with lunch soon, so they can take over...Assuming they didn't get into one of their fish arguments." He added with a smirk.

Robin nodded and led Raven to the training room, taking care to check on the empath regularly, just in case she looked pained from walking or moving her leg in general. "So," Robin started evenly, not looking at her. "What's going on between you and Beast Boy?"

Raven didn't reply immediately. _Should I tell him? After all, it's nothing to be ashamed off, it's not like he's not in a relationship as well... _After a few seconds, she said, "Nothing." But her blush told a different story. She pulled her hood up to hide it. Robin smirked.

"Nothing indeed," He said and nodded, deciding to let the matter slide...For now. They reached the training room soon enough, and when the door opened, a most unusual sight greeted them. Beast Boy had a warhammer drawn, and one of the assassins was coming down hard with his sword. From the two Titans point of view, it looked as if the assassin was going to kill the changeling. Raven reacted instantly. She saw her lover in danger and she quickly summoned her powers and with her cry of, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!", sent a wave of dark energy straight for the assassin.

Phantom saw the wave of dark energy heading for him from the corner of his eye. He turned away from Beast Boy and summoned a wall of shadow. The dark energy hit the wall harmlessly, but it knocked Phantom back, giving Beast Boy the chance to charge forward and tackle the assassin to the ground. Instinctively, he activated his wrist blade and pointed the tip on the blade at Phantom's throat. He smirked. "You lose," The changeling said.

Phantom pushed him off and sat up. "Wasn't fair." He spat. "She used powers."

"You only mentioned something about it not being fair unless it was ten to one," Beast Boy replied with a sly grin. "You never said anything about powers."

The assassin gave him a dirty look, but it quickly softened and he grinned. "Touché," He said and stood up and brushed himself off. He walked over to Robin and Raven.

"Who are you?" Raven asked.

"Phantom. Assassin." The assassin replied flatly. "Don't bother introducing yourself. You're Raven of the Teen Titans. And before you ask, I'm here training your friend Beast Boy." He said, practically answering Raven's questions before she asked them.

"How did you know I was going to ask that?" Raven queried in her monotone and raised an eyebrow.

Phantom grinned slightly. "It's a skill," He replied. Beast Boy ran up next to him and waved to Raven.

"Hey, Rae! How do you think I look?" He asked eagerly. Phantom sighed and rolled his eyes. Then, he went back to join Scavenger, who was sitting on the ground observing the scene with great interest.

Raven ran her eyes over Beast Boy carefully for the first time. His uniform was loose, but still tight enough to accentuate his muscles, especially those in his arms and chest. The hood gave him a mysterious edge which Raven found made him more appealing to her. He looked every inch the hero he was before but didn't look the part back then.

"Y-You look...Nice," Raven managed to say, her vocabulary sudden deserting her. They blushed. Beast Boy, like Raven, was thankful for the hood that hid their reddened cheeks. "So...Can I talk to you?" Raven asked. "I mean, after your training, of course..."

"Sure!" Beast Boy replied enthusiastically. Raven nodded and turned to leave. "Wait!" The changeling said and grabbed her hand. Robin, who had been standing to the side the whole time to observe the couple arched an eyebrow, expecting the changeling to be blasted halfway across the room. Instead, Raven just looked at him quizzically. "You don't have to go..." Beast Boy said. "You could stay and watch me train!"

Phantom knew what was coming next. The changeling was going to turn around and give him a pleading look. He already had a reply ready. Before Beast Boy could even turn, he shouted, "Don't see why not, you two could pick up some tips and tricks!" Scavenger scooted closer to him and shot him a sly look.

"Ah, such a hopeless romantic..." She teased, exaggerating a British accent and grinned.

"Shut up," Phantom shot back, keeping his voice low. "And if you wanna sound like a Brit, at least do it right," He added.

"They do look cute together, though." Scavenger commented. Phantom just nodded slightly.

Beast Boy grinned at Raven. "See? They said you could stay." He said, nearly begging. The empath sighed, smiled and nodded. Beast Boy's grin widened and he ran back to the ring.

Raven sat next to Robin on the floor. She noticed the boy wonder looking at her with a puzzled look. "What?" She snapped.

The boy wonder just looked away and said, "Nothing at all." _Something's up with those two, I just know it._

Phantom and Scavenger stood up and joined Beast Boy in the ring. "Alright, you're quite good, but there's some things we need to work on. Mainly your attacking." Phantom said in a clinical tone. "You're way too passive. You need to be more aggressive. Can you do that?"

Beast Boy nodded. "I think."

"No thinking," Scavenger said and shook her head. "I need you to know." She pointed her spear threateningly at Beast Boy. "Ten seconds. Starting now." She said, her voice unusually stern.

"Come on guys, don't you have to take these things slow?" Beast Boy asked frantically.

Phantom shook his head. "We have to drill this into your head. Part of mental training." He replied calmly. "Make your decision fast." He raised his sword and took up a fighting stance. "Or we will make it for you."

Beast Boy hesitated, unsure of what to do. The assassins didn't even hesitate, they advanced, weapons ready. Scavenger stabbed at him, which Beast Boy dodged by sliding to the side, but then a chop from Phantom nearly hit his back, if he didn't jump to his right. "Come on," Phantom taunted. "Can't run away for ever." He lunged forward with his blade.

Beast Boy deflected the blow with his hammer, knocking Phantom back. He seized the opportunity and swung his hammer towards the assassin's head. Phantom blocked the weapon with his arm, the leather armor absorbing most of the blow. Then, he countered with a low kick which caused the changeling to loose his balance. "Another lesson," He said. "Fighting dirty is always an option." Phantom extended a hand to Beast Boy, intending to pull him up and punch him in the face. However, the changeling followed the assassin's suggestion. He took the hand and pulled Phantom down while scrambling to his feet.

"Nice!" Scavenger complimented while stabbing with her spear repeatedly. "But you're gonna need more than just tricks to take me down." Beast Boy jumped back avoiding the spear.

"Whoah!" He shouted as he avoided an exceptionally close stab. He could actually feel the edge of the spear brush against him. He swung around with his hammer, but he hit only air. He was horribly out-ranged. Scavenger smiled evilly, twirled around and smacked Beast Boy in the ribs with the blunt end of his spear, knocking the breath out of him and sending him sprawling to the ground.

"Alright, we'll stop for now. Take a short break," Phantom said and helped Beast Boy up. "You're doing good, mate." He said and cracked a small smile. "But we need to work on your technique."

Beast Boy nodded and clipped the hammer to his belt and walked over to Raven. "So, Rae, whatcha want to talk to me about?" He asked. Raven didn't reply immediately.

"Are you hurt?" She asked in her monotone voice. "I mean, you did take quite a big hit to the ribs.."

Beast Boy chuckled and shook his head. "I'm fine, really. It just knocked the breath outta me, that's all." He assured her. Then, he asked, "So, whatcha want to talk to me about?" By that time, Robin had decided to leave the couple alone and left to grab something to eat.

"We'll talk in my room," She said and walked away. Beast Boy quickly followed her.

**VvVvV**

Beast Boy sat next to Raven on her bed. "So, what's so important you could tell me in the training room?" He asked.

"Why did you join the assassins?" Raven asked back.

Beast Boy was surprised by the question. It never occurred to him that Raven would have wanted to know his reason for joining them. "W-Why?" Beast Boy stuttered out. "I mean, didn't Robin tell you? My parents were assassins, and I-I'm just filling their shoes."

Raven sighed. "You and I both know that's only one of the reasons." She said and grabbed his hand. "Please, just tell me: What's the other reason?"

The changeling looked at her hand in his. _She must really want to know..._ He sighed. There was no backing out. "Well, um..." He began. "It was because I wanted to learn and become stronger, like one of the assassins...Then I could protect you..." He said meekly. "I mean, you nearly died! I should've stayed with you and not went ahead and helped Cyborg!" He took his hand from hers and buried his face in his palms. "It was all my fault! I didn't help you out,"

"Beast Boy," Raven said calmly, trying to stop the green boy from ranting.

"I should've been able to fight those guys off!" He shouted.

Raven gave an exasperated sigh, cupped his cheeks and forced him to look at her. "Beast Boy, listen to me. Whatever happened wasn't your fault. Robin's our best fighter, and even he was bested." She said, driving each word home. Then, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. "Please stop brooding. It isn't like you."

Beast Boy slowly slid his arms around her waist and hugged her back tightly. "I-I'm sorry, Rae."

"And stop apologising. It's not your fault." Raven whispered into his ear. She pulled away and looked at him. An awkward silence followed. Both were blushing furiously, but they didn't attempt to hide it from each other. What was the point of that? "So," Raven said, breaking the silence. "You're an assassin now?"

Beast Boy nodded. "I guess so, unless there's some ritual I missed out." He paused. "Are you okay with that? I mean, I can back out if you-" He was stopped by a finger to his lips.

"Shh.." Raven shushed him. "It's alright." They looked at each other, staring deep into the other party's eyes. Beast Boy never noticed until then that the dark girl's eyes shined, contrasting with her dark personality. Raven could see the hurt and pain in the changeling's emerald orbs, hidden deep behind a shield of jokes and pranks. They moved closer, their lips about to touch...

"Hey, uh...Beast Boy? You in there? Hope I'm not interrupting anything." He heard Scavenger's voice coming from the other side of the door. The door suddenly slid open and the assassin nearly fell flat on the floor. "Whoah, didn't know that did that." She said nervously and righted herself. Then, she saw the two teens, faces only inches apart. She grinned mischievously. "I didn't see anything, heard nothing, was never here." She said and gave them an understanding nod. Then, she turned and left, closing the door behind her.

Beast Boy and Raven let out a sigh of relief, then turned back to each other. "Now, where were we?" Beast Boy asked.

"I don't know," Raven replied and grinned inwardly at Beast Boy's hurt expression. "But I know where we were going." She continued and swooped in, pressing her lips against Beast Boy's. The changeling took a second to process what just happened. When he did, he kissed back with just as much passion.

Raven broke off the kiss first. "You'd better go." She said, sounding unusually shy. "You've got your training."

Beast Boy looked sad, but then he smiled. "Alright. I'll do it for you." He gave her a peck on the cheek and quickly left for the training room.

END


	6. Chapter 6

Terribly sorry for my long hiatus. It's been a hectic start of the year for me. School ending late daily...Having to tutor my juniors, my computer crashing repeatedly (Got it fixed at long last)...Anyway, here's chapter 6. Going to focus slightly more on my OC's for the first half or so, so bear with it.

EDITED: Fixed up the ending a bit.

Chapter 6

3 weeks had passed since Beast Boy's first training session, and the Templars had yet to make a move. It was a welcome rest for the green titan, since Phantom and Scavenger decided to relax on the rigorous training schedule, much to Phantom's chagrin. However, they were still tiring and frequent.

"You'll thank us later." Scavenger would say when the changeling complained. However, as relaxed as everyone was, the assassins were still tense. They were not used to peace at all. After all, their lives were defined by violence and conflict.

"Think this is going to last?" Phantom asked Scavenger and sat down next to her on a rock facing the sea. They were taking a break from Beast Boy's training, both to allow the changeling the rest and to allow them to discuss their worries and doubts.

Scavenger shook her head. "No way. Those Templar bastards are planning something, just you wait." She said, as if it was not a possibility, but a certainty. Phantom nodded in agreement but said nothing. Scavenger turned to look at her teammate. She noticed that he had a faint smile on his face. "What might you be smiling about, hm?" She asked mockingly, knowing how much he hated others to see him with any expression on his face.

To her surprise, he did not respond with denial or anger, but said in a calm voice, "Nothing. Just enjoying this moment." He leaned back and supported himself with his hands. "It's rare that we have weather this good and get to savour it, don't you think?"

"Who are you, and what have you done to the real Phantom?" Scavenger asked jokingly, careful not to use his real name. They only used it when they were sure it was safe. "You're not usually this...Calm, if you don't mind me saying."

Phantom shook his head, his black hair moving in the wind. "No offense taken." He replied. "I mean, this calm allowed me to think...I've been sort of a dick, huh?" He asked and glanced at Scavenger.

"You could say that," She said with a small grin.

Phantom shrugged. "I've been thinking...Maybe it's time I learned to play nice. You know?" He said softly. "Let's face it. Our natural lives are long, but then the chances of survival in this job is low. Best we enjoy what time we have here." He said flatly.

Scavenger looked away and down. "Yes," She whispered. "You're right." Phantom's words made her think back to her parents, before they were killed by the Templars. Her father had always told her to enjoy life, and never let anything bring her down. Now, her friend's words brought those memories back, and she felt tears well up in her eyes.

Phantom noticed his friend's unusual body language, namely the slouched shoulders and refusal to look up. Her hood was up, so it was hard to tell what emotion she was feeling from her face, but Phantom had a good idea. "Sorry," He muttered and inched closer to her. Normally, he would not care, but then he had been stuck with Scavenger for a long time, and although he would not admit it to anyone else, he was extremely protective of her.

Scavenger wiped her eyes and forced a small laugh. "What for? You didn't do anything."

Phantom rolled his eyes and sighed. "Don't try to fool me. I know sadness when I see it." He said, then, deciding it would be the best course of action, placed an arm around Scavenger in a rare act of compassion from him.

"What...What're you doing?" Scavenger asked, surprised and blushing. _Calm down, he's only doing this as a friend...It's not like he's attracted to you or anything._ She told herself, but found herself wishing to believe that Phantom's act of kindness meant more than that. It did not help that she had slight feelings of attraction towards Phantom.

Phantom did not reply, and allowed Scavenger to lean on him. And, as usual, the Titan's alarm ruined the otherwise peaceful moment. Scavenger pulled away from Phantom and stood up. "Um...Thanks," She said uncertainly. "We should get going, see what's happening."

"Yes, we should," Phantom said with a soft smile and followed her into the tower.

**VvVvV**

The rest of the assassins were gathered in the common room along with the Titans. The two groups were hanging out together for the day, except for Beast Boy, who had to train. Regardless of origin or biological age, the assassins were still, mentally, teenagers and the want to have fun was still there. Of course, according to Tracker, Phantom had long since lost his sense of fun.

"What took you guys so long?" Tracker asked and raised an eyebrow. "Out doing...Something?" He asked, not concealing his hidden meaning well. Spectre was trying her best to suppress her giggling.

"Hey, Scav," She called out to Scavenger using the assassins nickname for her. "He didn't touch you anywhere sensitive, right?" She asked before breaking out into hysterical laughter. "Cause I'll punch him so hard he'll be sent back to Krakow!" She finished while clutching her stomach.

Scavenger blushed furiously and looked to Hunter for help. He shrugged and pointed to the apparently unfazed Phantom, who stood there looking at the two quizzically. Then, he said the one thing that he knew would get them riled up. "You know, you two would make an excellent couple." He deadpanned.

Immediately Tracker and Spectre ceased their teasing and stared daggers at Phantom.

"Enough," Robin said. Although technically he had no control over the assassins, he still maintained an aura of leadership which the assassins respected and generally deferred to. "We've got a major robbery at the bank-"

"Which?" Spectre asked quickly. Beside her, Tracker slapped his forehead with his hand.

"There's only one major bank here," Hunter explained. "Unless you can hold an ATM at knifepoint and demand money, I think that's where the heist's at." He nodded to Robin. "Please, do continue."

"Thanks," The boy wonder replied and glared at Spectre, who simply gave an impish grin. "Anyway, the situation has deteriorated and the robbers are holding hostages. That's why we were called."

"Why don't they call the...I don't know, Jump City S.W.A.T team?" Beast Boy complained. He was having a great time with Raven, and he had to admit, training was beginning to be fun in some weird, twisted way.

"If you recall, Jump City has us, and thus saw no need for a S.W.A.T team." Robin said. "Anyway, in any case, this will be short and sweet, nothing too big. We should get this done within an hour."

"I say half!" Cyborg called out. Robin shot him a look and Cyborg simply shrugged.

Hunter looked at his fellow assassins and they all nodded. "Why don't you guys let us handle it?" He suggested. "We'll get this done, and you guys can take a break. Everybody wins." Beast Boy nodded eagerly in agreement.

"Thanks, but then we don't want you guys stealing our limelight." Robin replied with a smirk. "You guys can tag along if you want, but don't expect doing much." Then, he quickly added, "Remember: No killing."

"We'll go anyway, beats staying around doing nothing." Tracker said with a shrug.

**VvVvV**

Phantom pulled Beast Boy back into cover, a hail of 7.62mm bullets from the infamous AK-47 assault rifle. "Watch it," The assassin warned. He picked up a metal rod and slowly poked it out around the corner. Almost instantly, a second round of bullets struck it, knocking it out of Phantom's hands.

"Why weren't we told that they have guns?" Beast Boy asked, gasping as he had just been running away from what the assassins termed 'the kill box'. It was the area where their enemies could hit them from any direction and therefore a major hazard. Most of the civilians in the area had been evacuated, thanks to the police. "AK-47s, no less!"

"Technically, they're Type 56 Chinese copies," Tracker, who was next to them pointed out. "I got Raven and Starfire safe." He said and gestured with his head to the two girls behind him. "I think the rest got out intact, not sure." He continued, shaking his head.

"So, now what? Wait and hope they run out of ammo?" Beast Boy asked.

Phantom looked at Tracker. They had three Titans and two assassins with the rest of them at god knows where. Their enemies had military grade assault rifles, pistols and Tracker suggested that they could possibly have explosives. "Well...Fuck. We're screwed." He murmured.

"I could use my powers to destroy their weapons." Raven suggested. "Or at the very least pull them away."

Tracker shook his head. "You step out, they'll make swiss cheese out of you before you can even blink."

Phantom looked at Tracker, then at his own hands, then at the wall. "There's a way," He said suddenly. "Tracker, you're with me. The rest of you, on our go, hit them hard." He said quickly. "We'll be the bait. Just wait for the shouts and screams." With a simple nod to Tracker, they both ran up the nearest wall and jumped onto the roof of the building.

"The assassins are...How you say, meowing-" Starfire began.

"Barking." Raven corrected her, knowing what she wanted to say. "And yes, you're right."

Beast Boy merely looked at the wall the assassins seemingly scaled effortlessly and hoped that one day, he might just be as good and proficient as them.

Tracker ran alongside Phantom as the rushed towards the building the robbers were holed up in. "So, what's the master plan?" Tracker asked as they leapt between the gap between two buildings. "Or is there even one?" He patted his shoulder sheaths to ensure the throwing knives were still there.

"Flanking maneuver." Phantom replied. "We'll hit them from the back while the Titans hit their front." He explained. "Basic hammer and anvil tactic."

Tracker gave a thin smile. "You do realise that this is quite risky, that if they have a rear guard the Titans will get slaughtered like troops on the eastern front of World War two?"

"Then we'll just hope that they're dense, then." Phantom replied and landed on another rooftop. "We'll strike from here. From above." He ordered. Tracker crouched low and moved to next to Phantom, looking down at the robbers. They had decided that holing up in the bank proper would be tactically unsound, as there was a restricted view of the surrounding area, so they decided to make their stand outside.

Phantom understood their rationale, but decided that ironically, their bid for a better view so they could defend themselves easier was to be their downfall. He reckoned that with Tracker, they could take down at least half of the dozen strong robbers if they struck quick enough.

"You see anything wrong with this?" Tracker asked. "I mean, they're just staying there, as if waiting for something. No negotiations, no demands...You'd think with such firepower they'd be making all sorts of demands." He pointed out.

"You're right, and we'll be on our guard." Phantom whispered back and nodded. "But right now we have civilians to rescue. Check weapons." He said, then activated his hidden blade and was rewarded by a quiet _shik_ as the blade extended from the gauntlet. Tracker did the same to ensure he equipment was in working order. "On my go."

"Uh..." Tracker started and pointed to the left flank of the robbers. They were behind them, and so were relatively safe from being seen. "I think Robin's beating us to the punch."

Phantom squinted as he surveyed the area. "What the hell is he doing?"

**VvVvV**

"Seriously, I don't think this is a good idea." Hunter said for the umpteenth time. Spectre and him had dragged Cyborg to safety while Ranger and Scavenger covered Robin as the ran round a corner and into an alley. "They've got assault rifles."

"We have powers," Robin pointed out.

Hunter shook his head. "Not much help here. Without visual contact, we might as well destroy the whole city." He said. "And if we do get into visual contact, I think they'd notice."

"Then we'll have to get close. Their rifles will be sort of useless if we can get close enough." Robin said. "And if we hit them from the side, they won't see us coming and you can use your powers."

Ranger shifted uncomfortably. Spectre nodded. "But it's a shot," She said, agreeing with Robin. "Let's flank 'em. Hopefully they'll be caught off guard." Robin quickly led them down the alley, Cyborg and the rest following close behind.

"Where's Phantom and the rest?" Scavenger asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

"I'm sure your boyfriend's fine." Spectre replied lightly with a giggle.

Hunter frowned. "Not the time for jokes, Spec. And Scav, I'm not sure. But I'm guessing they're fine." He said in a measured tone. He turned back to following Robin, but instead he walked straight into Cyborg. "Sorry, mate." He muttered.

"No worries, man." Cyborg replied lightheartedly.

"In position," Robin reported.

Hunter moved to next to Robin and surveyed the area. True, they were in the perfect position for a flanking maneuver, but then there was still a slight distance to cover, and he would put money on the fact that the robbers would hear them coming and mow them down with their rifles. Hunter groaned. The assassins had a cache of modern day weapons back at the base, but then tradition dictated that they were to be used only as a last resort.

"I would give anything to have an AA-12 right now." He murmured, referring to his favourite automatic shotgun. He turned to Robin. "You sure about this? I mean, there's a distance to cover, and those 7.62 rounds are no joke."

"Cy can cover us, I doubt bullets can penetrate his metallic parts." Robin suggested.

"Hey, I still have flesh bits, ya know?" Cyborg protested. "If I'm going to be your shield, at least ensure that I'm 100% robot before throwing me into the line of fire."

"He has a point." Spectre piped up. "Those AK-47s are automatic rifles. And at this range, accuracy's not a problem." She said. "Best we come up with another course of action."

"No time," Robin said. "Any longer and negotiations might break down. It's now or never."

Hunter sighed. He didn't agree with the plan, but he did agree with the rationale. If they were going to do anything, it had to be now. "On your go."

Robin nodded. "Alright. 3...2..1..." He stood up and shouted, "GO!"

**VvVvV**

"My kingdom for a Cheytac Intervention." Tracker muttered, referring to their standard-issue sniper rifle as he observed Robin. "Kid has no idea of the meaning of stealth, huh?" He asked as the robbers turned to face the boy wonder and his group.

"Bloody hell." Phantom swore. "Shit's hit the fan, mate. We have to move." He said and the two pulled their hoods up, Tracker also pulling a bandana around his neck up to cover his mouth. Then, they jumped down from the roof and to ground level. Tracker followed close behind. The two closed the distance towards the closest armed robbers and nearly slammed their wrist blades into their necks, but they remembered the Titan's strict rules on killing. The assassins decided to honor them and instead punched the robbers hard, knocking them out cold.

But it was too late to help Robin and his group. They were taking cover behind two low walls as bullets whipped past them, the assassins behind one and the two titans behind the other. "Did you have to shout!?" Hunter yelled at Robin.

"It's nearly like our protocol!" Robin shouted back. "Usually the sight of even two Titans makes any robber back down!"

Phantom looked down the main road and saw the remaining three titans rushing towards them. He shifted his attention to the Robin's pinned group. He had to do something. He nodded to Tracker, and they both unsheathed their short swords. Fast, small and agile. Perfect for clearing large numbers of enemies.

Dark energy shrouded the robbers weapons and were ripped from their hands, much to their surprise. "What the hell!?" One of them managed to shout out before a starbolt knocked him out cold. The assassins were all aware of the Titan's rules against killing, so they decided that for once, they would try a non-lethal approach. Rather than using their weapons, they tried their fists.

"Well, damn," Cyborg crowed as he saw Ranger floor a masked robber with a powerful punch to the stomach. "Looks like she can fight!" He said with a slight smile and fired his sonic cannon at another unfortunate robber that was in his line of fire. Beast Boy backed him up by turning into a gorilla and smacking aside anyone who tried to attack the mechanical teen from behind.

However, the robbers had the foresight to arm themselves with sidearms, and one of them whipped out a military-grade 9mm pistol and seemingly fired a single shot randomly, hoping that it would hit someone. The bullet struck Scavenger in the side, just as she lashed out against another robber. She screamed and went down, blood pouring from the wound.

Phantom saw his friend go down and immediately decided to disregard all the rules. Morality be damned, he wasn't going to let his friend die because of some rule which he thought was stupid. He stabbed one of the robbers in the neck with his wristblade, severing the jugular and killing him instantly. Then, he rounded on another one and stabbed his blade into the stomach. He made a beeline towards Scavenger, then, without another word, whisked both of them away with his powers.

At that point, most of the robbers were out cold, except the two that were killed by Phantom. Robin was obviously not happy. "What the hell was that all about?" He asked Hunter aggressively. "I thought we told you: 'No killing'!"

"Yes, we know," Hunter replied levelly. "But you have to look from our point of view. Someone was injured, Phantom tried to get to her, people were in his way. He removed the obstacles." He paused and stared at Robin. "It's perfectly logical."

"But that makes him a murderer!" Robin protested. At this point, most of the Titans and Assassins gathered around the two, watching them argue with much interest.

Tracker's eyes narrowed, making him look more fearsome, as all that was visible was his two slits for eyes. "You all didn't seem to make such a big fuss out of this murdering business when he killed to save your lives." He said, acid dripping from his words.

Cyborg's eyebrow shot up, then he asked, "How'd you know about that?" He asked, slightly in surprise. No one had said anything about that.

"Phantom told us." Hunter replied. "And Tracker has a point." He said. Robin started to say something, but he the assassin cut him off. "It seems as if your rule can be bent if your lives are in danger." He stated. "So, I conclude that-"

"-You all only care about your self-preservation." Tracker concluded.

"That is not true!" Starfire shouted. "We risk our lives every-"

Spectre interrupted her. "Lass, when you start actually killing off warlords, corrupt officials, risking your lives for the good of the world, let us know." She said dismissively, her accent thickening.

"You-!" Robin reached for Spectre, but Cyborg stopped him.

"Easy, dude." He said. "It's not worth fighting over."

Robin stopped and calmed down. "You're right. They're not worth beating up." He said.

The assassins disregarded his words. "We're leaving." Hunter said and they all ran up the nearest wall, climbing onto the roof. Within seconds, they were out of sight.

"Nice going, dickhead." Beast Boy murmured.

**VvVvV**

In his underground lair, Slade smiled. Things worked out exactly as he had planned. Of course, he had to rely on Robin for the final straw, but ultimately everything was his plan. The death and capture of the robbers...His henchmen, was unfortunate, but he could find more helpers. No, what was the real prize was the rift between the assassins and the Titans.

Without the assassins, Slade could use the disruption device to nullify the Titan's powers and eliminate them without fear of too much resistance. It would be a walkover, might be a walk over hot coals, but a walk nonetheless. And of course, he did his research on the assassins. Their extreme loyalty to one another was the weakness he decided to exploit, that, and Phantom's apparent like for Scavenger.

"Relationships...So fun to twist." He said and smiled devilishly beneath his mask.

END

Sorry if it seems a bit rushed or anything...And...Now back to homework. See you guys later.

~Skiz


	7. Chapter 7

I'm back~Here's chapter 7 for your reading pleasure!

Oh, and if any of you has a fictionpress account, I'd appreciate it if you read and reviewed my story, 'Cause and Effect'. I'm under Melancholic Depression there. Thanks!

Chapter 7

Emmett waited patiently outside his superior's office, his plans for capturing the half-demon in his hands. He was nervous. He had to present his plan and idea as clearly as he could to get approval. And if his superior didn't like it...Then...

He didn't want to think about it. "Come in," his superior called. He gulped and walked into the office. "Ah, Emmett, just the person I wanted to see." The old man said. "We've had a change of plans. Pass whatever idea you have to me. You're going on another mission." He said. Emmett obediently handed the plans to his superior. He knew better than to object, as unhappy as he was that his hard work was going to waste.

"We've located another piece of Eden in this city. It's housed at warehouse 14, west side docks." He said and pointed to a point on his map. "Get there, and get that thing out. I want this done quick. I've already alerted every possible criminal group in the city to simultaneously rise up and commit as many misdemeanors as possible, so you'll be harder to spot." He explained.

"I'll get it done sir," Emmett said, trying to suppress his feeling of disdain at how easily his plan was thrown out the window. Without another word, he left the office.

**VvVvV**

"Is the prisoner secure?" One of the guards asked his companion. They were both dressed from head to toe in fiery red armor, with patches of black at random spots. They both held a spear in their right hand, with a shield on their left arm. The one who spoke turned and looked behind him nervously. Their prisoner, the one they were ordered to guard, was held in a stone cage above a pit of lava.

"Yea, yea," The other one replied dismissively. He was older than his friend, sounding more bored than worried and with a gruffer voice. "It's not like anyone's escaped from this place, yea? It's practically hell, without the eternal suffering."

"Ha," The younger guard chuckled nervously. "You're right. It's not like anyone's escaped before. It's fine. Yea." He said to reassure himself, though he still maintained a knuckle-white grip on his spear.

A voice alerted the two of them. "Never before doesn't mean a first's not possible, my friends." The voice said darkly. A figure, dressed in black and white armor materialized in front on them. In his hand he held a scythe, though he had a longsword sheathed at his hip, and a shortsword sheathed on the other hip. "Keep your damn guards up. He gets out, we're screwed."

"Szakal!" The older guard addressed his superior and stood to attention, standing ramrod straight with his weapon and shield by his side. The younger guard did the same. "Yes sir, we'll keep an eye on him." He would have shifted to the side to allow Szakal to have a look at the prisoner's cell, but they were standing on a thin strip of blood-red rock and stepping to the side would mean falling into molten rock.

"Not good enough, I'm afraid." Szakal said flatly. "Things are going awry in dimension 537. Templars going crazy. Not sure about their plans, but our dear friend here plays some part in their grand scheme." He explained. "I'm assigning one more squad, they'll be under your command."

"Thank you, sir." The younger guard said.

"Welcome," Szakal replied and nodded. "Jagarë might be dropping by, and Sova as well. You guys had better not make me look bad, you hear?" He said, threatening them, but everyone who was under him knew he rarely carried out the threats. He was too much of a good guy at heart.

"You got it," The older guard confirmed.

"Good," Szakal said curtly. "I'll be going now." He then tore open a portal with his scythe and jumped through. No one noticed the figure dressed in red and white hiding behind a rather large rock.

**VvVvV**

"Well...This sucks." Beast Boy said, dressed in his assassin garb, as he lied on the couch, staring at the ceiling. Raven was meditating at one corner while Robin and Cyborg were both concentrating on killing one another on a game. Starfire was in the kitchen cooking up something that the changeling reckoned was more like likely to come alive than be edible.

"What sucks?" Robin asked, eyes glued to the screen.

"It's been a week, and nothing's happened at all." Beast Boy stated.

"And that's bad because...?" Cyborg asked and trailed off. "Booya! Take that, boy wonder!" He shouted in glee as his character filled Robin's with bullets.

"Just you wait, tin man..." Robin growled and waited to respawn.

"Well, the assassins-" Beast Boy started but was rudely interrupted by Robin.

"I told you not to mention those murdering bastards," He growled in an unnatural low tone, looking away from the TV for the first time. Almost instantly, he snapped back to his gaming mode, hunched over the controller.

"I'm just saying the assassins gave us more than enough reason to be on our guards, what about the Templars?" He asked and sat up. "They did try to kill us, remember?"

"How can we be sure the assassins weren't lying?" Robin asked. "They never did explain how the Templars are the bad guys. They could have been lying for all we know."

Beast Boy shrugged and lied back down on the couch, staring at the blank ceiling once more. _Well, this is a good time to take a break, might as well enjoy it. _ His eyelids felt heavy and even the cacophony of the game his team mates were playing sounded like a lullaby. His eyes slowly closed and he began to drift off into the land of nod...

Then, almost on cue, the alarm sounded.

_Damn! Are these things timed or what?_ He shouted angrily in his mind and bolted upright. Robin and Cyborg quickly stopped their game. The boy wonder quickly exited the game and checked the situation. His jaw suddenly dropped. "Dude, what's up?" Beast Boy asked. Robin didn't reply. _Okay, shit's hit the fan. _"How bad?" He asked in a nervous voice.

"Criminal activity," Robin murmured, then turned to face his team. "Everywhere." He said and gestured to the screen. Everyone looked at it, and true enough, the were red spots everywhere, it was as if every criminal lowlife in Jump City chose that exact time to commit some kind of felony.

"Oh shit." Beast Boy said, breaking the silence. _Yup, shit's definitely hit the fan._

**VvVvV**

Phantom and Tracker jumped from building to building, scouting for any Templar activity. They actively ignored the regular criminals, even those serious ones, like armed assault, armed robbery and murders-in-progress. They had more important things to do. "Synchronized law-breaking. Should be an Olympic sport, huh?" Tracker asked and chuckled.

Phantom chuckled softly, but then grew serious. "I sense a conspiracy-" He paused as they leapt from a rooftop and landed on another one. "-Why would everyone act up on the same day? Same time? Seems like they're hiding something." He finished.

Tracker stopped and looked at Phantom, who was leaning against a wall. "Good point," He said. "And it would take quite a lot of influence and cash to pull something like this off..." His eyes widened as he came to a deduction. "Oh. Fuck."

"Exactly." Phantom said and grimaced. "It's going to take us ages to comb the entire area, even if we call the rest. By then the Templars would have completed whatever they are doing." He said and sighed. "This looks bad."

"Sure does." Tracker nodded in agreement. "C'mon, let's keep moving." Without a word, he took a running start and jumped down the building to street level, breaking his fall by rolling forward. Phantom followed suit and soon they were running down the streets, desperately trying to figure out whatever was going on.

**VvVvV**

Emmett looked around nervously as his team got in position. "Ready?" He asked them. They responded with a series of nods. "All right, let's move." He whispered and led them down the alley towards a seemingly abandoned warehouse. He had to call in several favors, spend nearly tens of thousands to pull his plan off. While the Titans and Assassins were busy fighting crime, he could lead his team to obtain their objective.

The group moved down the rows of crates and boxes carefully. "Remember, it's small, so keep your eyes peeled." He reminded his men. They were all dressed in the same uniform. White clothing underneath red metallic armor. They held swords in their hands. Emmett scanned every crate he came across. He was running out of time. It wouldn't be long until someone figured out his plan. Or until the crime spree ran out of steam.

"Sir," One of his men called to him. The Templar came out holding a small rectangular box. It was the length of his forearm, and looked rather heavy. "I think I found it." He handed the crate to Emmett. He opened it slowly and looked at the artifact inside. It was a small round sphere, similar to the one he saw in the possession of his superior.

"Good work," He said and nodded to the man who found it. "Now let's get the hell outta here." They turned and slowly retraced their steps. They barely took ten steps before a voice alerted all of them.

"Going somewhere?" The voice said. It sounded like it belonged to a teenager, and because of that, Emmett wasn't particularly worried. _Probably some kid with too big an ego._ He unsheathed his longsword and gestured for his men to do the same.

"Come out, boy," Emmett shouted and stepped forward. His men formed a loose circle behind him, looking in every direction. "Or go home, you choose. We're too powerful for you." He continued with a evil smile on his face. He was secretly hoping whoever it was would face them. He needed some practice with his sword.

And then, the Boy Wonder jumped down from a stack of crates, flanked on both sides by his team mates. "As you wish," Robin replied with a smirk. The Templars' weapons didn't worry him. And even if they could jam their powers again, they were trained in hand-to-hand combat.

A green orb of energy coalesced in Emmett's hand and he threw it at the Titans. The orb exploded and shrouded the teens in a sickly green mist. As the Titans struggled to see through the smog, the Templars scattered, some moving to a better position while others taking the opportunity to attempt to get a first strike.

Unfortunately, they had no such luck. Beast Boy had turned into a hummingbird the minute he saw the green orb and flew high up, before turning into a elephant and falling onto one rather unlucky Templar. He reverted back to human self and took a short glance back to check on his team. Raven had summoned a shield of dark energy to protect them, so the green energy hardly affected any of them.

"Damn," Emmett swore and was tempted to rush into the fight. Then, he remembered his mission. To hell with his men, he needed to get his mission done right and fast if he wanted to live. But he still felt responsible for his men's safety. He made sure no one saw him before kneeling and setting a silver box in a dark corner, just out of sight. Then, he bolted off, going deeper into the warehouse, trying to find another exit.

The Templars were losing. Their weapons meant nothing when the Titans had a powerful magician that could rip the weapons from their hands, melt them, or do both. The fact the the half-machine could withstand anything they threw at him did nothing to help. Neither did knowing that they were getting pummeled by an alien princess that looked so sweet on the outside. The last factor killed their dignity as well.

"This," Cyborg crowed as he knocked two Templar heads together and caused to fall unconscious. "Is a real fight!" He activated his sonic cannon and blew another Templar back into a stack of crates, causing them to fall on him. Starfire backed him up by hitting them from the air by starbolts, discouraging them from getting any closer. However, the Templars were more durable than they looked, picking themselves up after every hit and trying again.

"Fanatics," Raven murmured and chanted her usual mantra, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos." A wave of black energy slammed into three already battered and bruised Templars and threw them back a good five meters. However, they simply got up, brushed themselves off and tried again. It was only a matter of time before the Titans would tire.

Unknown to any of the combatants, the silver box shuddered slightly, the chemicals inside becoming unstable. A split second later, it exploded. Though not an especially huge explosion, it still destroyed crates and boxes in close proximity and sending out a massive shockwave.

Nearly everyone who wasn't outside a two meter radius was knocked out cold. Cyborg only managed to stay conscious because he was half metal. Beast Boy didn't manage to get out of the radius fast enough and was sent flying back into one of the Templars. The rest of the Titans were well away from the blast zone and were relatively unharmed, only suffering slight cuts from flying shrapnel.

"Take the green one. Maybe we can negotiate something," The apparent current leader of the Templars ordered. Without a word, two of the soldiers picked up the unconscious Beast Boy and, taking advantage of the momentary confusion, ran through the Titans and out of the warehouse. They piled into their vehicle and sped off.

"After them!" Robin shouted and coughed. The dust stung his throat and eyes, but he still had a job to do as a leader. The Templars had taken one of his team mates, one of his friends, and he'll be damned if he let them get away. The Titans quickly got into the T-Car and followed the Templars close behind.

**VvVvV**

"Hey, car chase," Tracker said absentmindedly as he and Phantom took a short break on a rooftop. After conducting a ground-level search, they decided that they would have better luck if they took to the rooftops, even though it was more tiring. It allowed them to have a better view around them.

Phantom said nothing and moved to beside Tracker. "So what?" He asked monotonously. "It's not like it's high speed or anything." He muttered.

"See the chaser?" Tracker asked and pointed to a blue and white vehicle.

"Yea, so?" Phantom asked disinterestedly. "It's the T-Car. So? Thought we were through with those hypocrites." He said bitterly. Then, he looked back at the chase.

"Yea, but that green dude's cool, yea?" Tracker said. "And that goth chick's pretty damn hot..."

"Keep your eyes on Ranger, mate." Phantom replied quickly. Tracker only stared at his friend with a flat look. Then, they both turned back to the chase. They were nearing their building. The Titans seemed to be gaining, but every time they closed the distance, they had to turn or swerve to evade oncoming traffic.

"It's been a while since we did anything fun..." Tracker mused. Phantom didn't need to ask him what he meant. It was clear. Phantom sighed and looked back at the vehicle the Titans were chasing. _Wait...Wait..._ His eyes narrowed as he estimated the distance between him and the vehicle. When he was sure he could do what he wanted to, he leapt from the building. "Hell yea!" Tracker shouted happily and followed him.

Phantom landed feet first on the roof of the van. He clung on tight as the Van tried to shake him off. Tracker had no such luck as he had jumped after Phantom. He landed on the hard ground, but thanks to his half-Dimension master physiology, his bones withstood the shock. He swore as the T-Car sped past him. _Screw this. Time to have some fun._ He said to himself as a grin appeared on his face.

Phantom held on as tight as he could. The least he wanted to do was to kill the driver. HE swung himself over the driver's side and at the same time, lashed out with his fist to smash the window. As his fist smashed clean through the window, he activated the hidden blade and stabbed the driver in the neck, killing him instantly. Then, wondering if the human heaven and hell thing was right, he released his grip and was thrown off the vehicle.

He landed on his back, but suffered little injury. He stood up and rubbed his bruised back. Suddenly, a wall of flame erupted from the ground, and the van's tires suddenly melted and solidified, gluing it to the ground. Phantom smirked. _Typical Tracker._ He sighed and flexed his fingers. _Well, if he wants to play it this way..._ He closed his eyes and concentrated on every bit of shadow available. Since it was late in the afternoon, there were not a lot of shadows, but Phantom improvised. The shadows converged on the van and wrapped around it, phasing it though the ground.

Then, it reappeared, rising out of the ground right in front of the T-Car. Cyborg quickly slammed on the brakes. The car skidded to a halt, missing the van by mere inches. "What the hell?" The mechanical teen asked in surprise.

Tracker dashed past the Titan's vehicle in a flash of red. He jumped on two Templars who emerged from the van, stabbing them in the neck with his dual hidden blades as he knocked them to the ground. He turned back and stared into the eyes of Robin, who was riding shotgun. He pulled his neckerchief down so the boy wonder could see his smug grin.

The Titans piled of the their vehicle and joined the fray. Phantom emerged from the ground, shrouded in shadow. Deciding that the Titans could handle it, he nodded to Tracker, and they both disappeared into the shadows of an out-of-the-way alley.

_Looks like their still trying to help,_ Robin said mentally as he ran towards the van. He glanced at the two dead bodies briefly. _In their own way, of course._ He quickly diverted his attention back to the matter at hand. He kicked the doors of the van in and retrieved a battered, bruised, dazed, but otherwise unharmed Beast Boy from the inside. The remaining Templars had fled, probably due to the sudden appearance of the assassins.

"Looks like they might still like us after all." Cyborg commented as Raven helped Beast Boy into the T-Car.

"Maybe," Robin muttered. "We have to keep moving," He said, suddenly serious. "We have a lot to cover." He said and walked back to the T-Car.

"Ugh..." Beast Boy moaned as he regained consciousness. "What the hell happened?" He asked and opened his eyes while rubbing his head. He noticed he was between Starfire and Raven in the back of the T-Car. "Hey Rae," He said with a weaker version of his trademark grin. His girlfriend gave him a faint smile, which made Beast Boy's grin wider.

"To make a long story short, you got knocked out cold, got kidnapped by the bad guys, but the Assassins mysteriously appeared and stopped them cold." Cyborg replied, paraphrasing everything that had transpired into that short sentence.

"The assassins?" Beast Boy asked excitedly. "Did they say anything?"

"No, they only showed up, stopped those guys and left immediately." Robin replied. A long silence followed as Cyborg sped down the streets to the next crime scene.

Raven was healing Beast Boy with her powers. "Next time you should be more careful." She scolded him in a light tone to show that she wasn't angry, though she was a bit upset. She hated seeing her boyfriend getting injured in any way.

"I'll try," Beast Boy replied, then broke into a wide grin as he added jokingly, "But the scars and bruises do make me look more manly, right?" Raven frowned and pinched the pointy part of his left ear. Beast Boy faked a pained expression and said, "Ouch Rae, that hurt."

Raven smirked. "I know, that was the point." Then, she gave him a peck on the cheek. Cyborg gave a wolf whistle and Raven shot him a death glare. Starfire was trying not to hug her two friends as tightly as she could, mainly because they were in a car and there wasn't enough space. Even Robin was grinning slightly.

"Hey, invite us to the wedding," Cyborg said, laughing.

"Shut up," Beast Boy said and tried to be angry, but failed. It was times like those that truly made him feel as if the Titans were his family.

**VvVvV**

"Nothing like springing a group of Templars, yea?" Tracker asked as he and Phantom navigated the maze they constructed in their warehouse, not far from where the Templars pulled their heist. Tracker walked beside Phantom, twirling a dagger with his fingers. "Oh, I wished I saw their faces when I got that firewall up." He said and looked at Phantom. "You gotta admit, that was pretty damn amazing."

"Yea, yea, you're the epitome of awesome." Phantom replied sarcastically and rolled his eyes.

"Hey, you can be jealous, it's perfectly normal." Tracker said smugly and puffed his chest out.

Phantom said nothing. After a minute, he suddenly said, "Don't make my rip out your voice box." Tracker quietened and they navigated the remaining part of the maze in silence. As they neared the lift, a shadow portal emerged in front of Phantom. "Oh god, what now?" He groaned. He was sore and tired. The last thing he needed was someone calling for help.

"Um, sir," A voice said from the Portal. "We have a problem. Where are you?"

"I'm with Haeskella." Phantom replied, dropping their codenames. If this was a distress call form another dimension, they had to introduce themselves with their given names, or it would only lead to confusion. "What's wrong?"

"Um...We have a situation." The voice said. A roar was heard in the background. "Oh shit! Back off, get away!" The voice shouted to someone else. A scream was heard, and the portal closed. Phantom and Tracker stood there, mouths open as they tried to digest what was going on.

"What the hell..?" Tracker murmured. "Sounds bad, what are we going to do?" He asked, turning to face Phantom.

"Call Jagarë, Räv, Sova and Sokol (A/N: Tried to do an L with Slash, but dunno the keyboard code for it. ) " Phantom said decisively. "Looks like it's time to our job as dimension masters, let's move." He said and entered the elevator, Tracker following close behind him.

**VvVvV**

While the assassins were on their way home, Emmett returned to base and passed the orb to his superior. "Here's your piece of Eden," He said, his voice devoid of any emotion. He was disgruntled and frankly unhappy with the way he had been treated. He was always bullied by his superiors, and no matter how hard he tried, never seemed to be able to land a promotion or even be congratulated.

"Good," The old man said and his hands began to glow red. "I've got good news for you. You're no longer required to capture the half-demon. One of our agents managed to penetrate the prison dimension's defenses and has released Trigon. Don't ask me how. He just did."

Emmett didn't smile. He only said, "Good to know the plan's going well, sir." He turned to leave. The old man didn't stop him. Emmett was now extremely displeased with the way he was treated, how his ideas rarely got the praise they deserved. He was also tired of living his life constantly worrying about an untimely demise. Frankly, he couldn't even remember why he had joined the Templars.

It was time for a change, and he was determined to make his decision count.

~END

So, that's chapter 7. What do you think? I'm trying hard to not let my OC's steal the limelight, so tell me whether it's succeeding.

Reviews would be appreciated

~Schizo


	8. Chapter 8

Hey, hey, it's chapter 8!

Oh, if there's anything wrong with the seasons in this story, allow me to apologise. I'm from S'pore, where it's unfortunately summer all year round. The closest thing we have to snow season is the monsoon season.

Chapter 8

Phantom walked into the med-bay after telling Tracker to gather the rest of the team. He had more important things to do. The stainless steel door slid open silently and he walked into the infirmary to check on Scavenger. He hated to admit it, heck, he even tried to rationalize his emotions, but then in the end, he just had to accept it. He was...In love with Scavenger, as much as he hated that term. Phantom sighed as he stepped into a chamber where he would be checked for any contagious diseases or open wounds, then cleaned with anti-bacterial spray to ensure he wouldn't transmit anything to patients.

_I hate this feeling, _He moaned inwardly. _And yet, it makes me happier than anything else._ He didn't know when he developed such feelings of attraction to his team mate, but maybe it all began with his slight interest in her optimistic and upbeat ways, and after they were teamed together, he was more or less her sounding board. He would listen to her rants and take any form of abuse she threw at him, and he knew she would do the same.

He learnt more about his team mate and even grew to respect her, even if he rarely showed it. _She went through as much as me, _He had told himself. _And she can still be so happy. A wonder. _Sighing once more, he entered Scavenger's ward and pulled his hood back. Unknowingly, he grinned as she turned her head to see him. "Someone's happy," She quipped.

Another thing he liked about her, always having something witty to say at any moment. Phantom nodded and took a seat in the chair next to her bed. "How are you feeling?" He asked in his most friendly tone, which was still close to monotonous.

"Fine, still sore around the wound, though." Scavenger replied and winced as she sat up. "I'm good to go, if that's what you're asking me to do."

Phantom shook his head. He was no professional medic, that was his sister's job, but he knew enough to know a bad wound when he saw it. "That bullet went clean through your stomach and damned near hit your liver. You need rest."

"Aw, someone worried about little old me?" Scavenger asked teasingly and grinned when she saw Phantom blush a deep crimson hue.

He wanted to say something witty to counter Scavenger, but decided that something like that would have hurt her, so, he said in a soft voice, "Yes." Scavenger's grin disappeared and she looked surprised. That was the biggest confession Phantom ever made. Otherwise he was usually all 'I don't care' about everything.

She smiled softly once again. Phantom decided that since they were about to go on a crazy, suicidal mission, he might as well got this off his chest. He leaned forward and placed a gloved hand on her cheek. Scavenger closed her eyes and placed her own hand on his, enjoying his touch.

"Sova," Phantom said, using her real name. "I..I mean, after such a long time-" He hated this habit of his. He tended to talk nonsense and talk non-stop every time he was nervous. He gulped. "I mean, what I'm trying to say is-" He was stopped by a finger to his lips.

"You talk too much, Szakal." Scavenger said with a smile and leaned in to kiss him. Phantom instinctively hugged her around the waist and Scavenger wrapped her arms around his neck. They pulled apart slowly and smiled at each other. "I love you," Scavenger whispered and hugged him.

"I..I love you too," Phantom managed to say, having to force himself to say the 'L' word.

Outside, the remaining four assassins had seen what the two had done. Ranger felt happy for her friends, but said nothing, and only smiled sadly as she looked over at Tracker, who was sniggering with Hunter, both trying to use this as leverage against Phantom. Spectre rolled her eyes at the boys.

"I think it's sweet," she said and crossed her arms. The two boys were now barely containing their laughter. She immediately moved closer to them. "If I see any of you giving either of them hell because of this, I'm going to poison you two in your sleep." She threatened in a low voice.

"Like you'll really do that," Hunter said with a grin. Sure, he was the leader and supposed to be mature, but he had to have his bit of fun every now an then. "You like us too much, Sokol."

Tracker broke into a wide grin. "He's right, and besides, you tried this on me before." He said casually. "You gave me grapes rather than nightshade." He laughed as he teased her lack of courage to carry out her threats. Sokol looked hurt, but only for a second.

"I can still drown you in grapes, if that's what you like." She said and walked back to Ranger.

Hunter looked at Tracker. "She's right. This isn't funny. We should be happy for our friends." The white assassin said in a serious tone. Tracker nodded and his grin faded. A second later, Hunter broke into a smile. "Man, that was a good one!" The two broke into a series of muffled laughs once again.

**VvVvV**

Emmett pulled his hood lower over his face to protect himself from the driving rain. It was sunny only half and hour ago, and now it seemed every storm cloud in the world decided to converge on Jump city to release their contents. He stuffed the folded sheet of paper into his coat and continued walking. He originally wanted to contact the assassins, but then decided that it was just as well as volunteering for a death sentence. No way would the assassins listen to him.

He decided that approaching the Titans was the easier way, seeing as they wouldn't kill him on sight. He wore a shirt with the Templar's cross and emblem beneath his coat. If he was going to switch sides, he might as well tell them straight which side he was from originally. And if he died....Well, at the very least they would be killing an 'evil' Templar.

Emmett still believed that the Templars' goal was noble and just. He only disagreed with their methods. He only looked stupid and spineless on the outside, but he was smart enough to dissect and figure out his superiors plans. He admired it's brute force tactic and simplicity: Summon a demon, hypnotise it with the Apple of Eden and have it do your bidding. Command it right, and world peace is just a sentence away. However, Emmett had a feeling that things wouldn't be as simple as they looked on paper. Firstly, Trigon was probably one of the most dangerous demons. Secondly, he doubted that the Apples of Eden would work on extra-dimensional species.

He sighed and stifled those thoughts. For now, he only had to contact the Titans and pray really hard that they would know what to do. After all, the daughter of Trigon was there, and he heard that she single-handedly stopped him once. She would know what to do. He pulled his coat closer to his body. The rain was getting heavier, and the sky getting darker. That was not a good sign for the usually bright and sunny Jump city.

Looking up, he saw the T-shaped Tower in front of him, dominating the Jump City skyline. The only problem now was that how was he going to traverse the wide stretch of ocean that stood between him and his destination. Smiling, he concentrated on himself and the tower. A second later, he transformed into a thin beam of green energy and shot towards the Tower. Moments later, he reappeared, standing at the entrance of the T-Tower and looking more nervous than ever.

On one hand, he was a powerful half-dimension master who could probably take everything the Titans could throw at him. On another hand, brutally defeating the people he wanted to help did nothing to strengthen relations. Sighing, he pressed the doorbell, which he found rather odd since the rest of the Tower seemed so advanced. _I somehow expected some sort of high-tech intercom system...Maybe even video cams or somethin'._

Just then, a small panel opened and Emmett saw the leader of the Titans looking at him. "Who is this?" The dark haired teen asked abruptly.

Emmett paused, not knowing whether to introduce himself and his affiliation there and then or to wait till he was inside. He chose the latter. "A friend," He said simply, making sure the hood hid most of his face. "I have certain information you might find interesting." He said, making sure he left out all the details.

Robin didn't like the stranger's voice, neither did he trust him. "Sorry, until you tell us who you are, you're not coming in." He said rather harshly.

Emmett sighed again. He removed his coat, lowered his hood and showed whoever that was looking the shirt with the Templar emblem. "If I didn't have anything important to say, or if this was a trick, I could've gotten what I wanted a long time ago, eh?" He said in a cocky voice. "If you're not gonna let me in, I can always sneak in. You have to trust me." When he didn't get a reply, he transformed into the same beam of green energy he used to get across the water and simply went underneath the main doors and into the common room where all the Titans were relaxing, except for Robin.

He reformed himself quickly and immediately brought his hands up against the angry glares of the Titans. Though he never fought them, he was still a Templar, and held accountable for any act of crime they committed in the city. "Wait!" He shouted frantically. "Before you go off killing me, I have something that might interest you!" He took out the piece of paper and handed it to the nearest Titan, Cyborg.

"What is it?" Robin questioned immediately and moved towards Cyborg, his eyes never leaving Emmett. The Templar realized that nearly all of them were geared up and ready to attack. The half-demon's hands were shrouded in her dark energy, the alien girl's with green energy. The changeling had taken the form of a tiger and the half-robot had his cannon arm ready.

"Looks like...Some sort of map?" Cyborg said, bewildered.

"It is," Emmett confirmed. "Now if you'll all just calm down, I can explain." He said and smiled as the Titans visibly relaxed and dissipated their energy fields, reverted back to human form and charged down their cannon. He took back the map from Cyborg and placed it flat on the kitchen counter. "Alright, this map basically outlines every dimensional highway there is."

"Dimensional Highway?" Raven asked and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, dimensional travel is not as instantaneous as the layman thinks." Emmett explained, then noticed the perplexed looks on all the Titans' faces. "Okay...How do I put it..." He trailed off as he tried to think of a good way to explain. "Okay, dimensional travel requires opening portals, any idiot knows that. What not everyone knows is that such portals can only go so far, unless you want to reach your destination in the form of atoms."

"So...You have to stop to open new portals?" Robin asked, catching on.

"Correct. Now, I hope you all know this, but..Uh..." He looked at Raven with a sympathetic, and at the same time, frightened look. "Trigon's...escaped." He said haltingly.

All eyes turned to the half demon, who looked to be in shock. Beast Boy placed an arm around her and shook her gently, trying to see if she was all right. Seconds later, she seemed to come out of whatever daze she was in and said, "No, it's not possible...I destroyed him." She whispered the last part.

"Not...Exactly." Emmett said, choosing his words carefully. If what he knew of the half-demon was true, one slip up and he could be sent to another dimension. Not that he couldn't return, but it would be a hassle. He bit his lip and continued. "I can't say much, confidential stuff and all, but I can tell you that before he was completely erased from existence, the dimension masters sent one of their agents to imprison him for future studies."

"Studies?" Robin questioned again. Why anyone would want to keep a dangerous demon alive, and to aggravate it more by performing experiments on it was beyond him.

Raven was becoming more and more unsettled. Eventually, Beast Boy decided to spare her the torment of learning how her father survived and gave the Boy wonder a look that said, 'I'm taking her to her room. Fill me in later.' Robin nodded and Beast Boy steered a willing Raven away from the common room.

Only once the doors closed behind the pair did Emmett continue. "Yes, studies. You have to understand, what Trigon does is what the dimension masters deal with nearly on a daily basis. And he was the most powerful they ever captured, of course they would run tests on it, if only to find out how to stop others like him."

"How can we know that you're telling the truth, if you don't mind me asking?" Robin, ever distrustful of strangers, asked.

"I..I was one of those that ran tests. I know the assassins are dimension masters as well, and it may seem weird that I'm a Templar while they're assassins, but when it's dimensional business, all this is set aside." He said slowly. "Besides, I'm not a Templar, not anymore."

"You left?" Starfire inquired, speaking for the first time.

Emmett simply nodded. "Not enough fun, too rigid." He explained shortly. "Anyway, I need to your help to contact the assassins. I have my doubts they would let me live long enough to explain myself." He folded the map and handed it to Robin. "Give them this, tell them that Trigon's back. They'll know what to do...I hope."

"That's...Going to be hard," Cyborg said hesitantly. "We might have had a falling out with them."

Emmett slapped his forehead and sat down heavily on a chair.

"Are you...Unwell?" Starfire asked and zoomed closer to Emmett.

The ex-Templar smiled and replied, "No, Tamaranean, I'm fine." He said. "But now we have the problem of getting things ready. We have to hit Trigon the minute he appears."

"What's the big deal?" Cyborg asked. "Raven kicked his ass before, I think she can do it again."

Emmett shrugged. "I only know what I have in my files. I read that it took a lot out of her the last time. You sure she can do it again?"

Robin remained silent as he thought about it. "I don't know," He said softly at last. "I...Don't know."

**VvVvV**

Beast Boy held Raven in his arms as she cried. They were sitting on her bed, as Beast Boy figured that she would want to rest after hearing such news. "He can't be back," The sorceress kept repeating over and over again as she buried her face in Beast Boy's chest. Her powers were going wild, throwing things about the room.

"Shh..." Beast Boy said gently. "It'll be okay, you defeated him before, I believe you can do it again." He stroked her hair slowly and rubbed her back as the girl cried out her fears. It was better than turning the Tower into a gigantic haunted house.

"No!" She suddenly shouted out and pulled away from the changeling's embrace. Seeing his hurt face, she continued in a gentler tone, "I mean, the last time it took a lot out of me, I don't think I can do it again..." She looked down and began to tear up once more. This made Beast Boy worry, he wasn't used to seeing Raven so vulnerable before.

"I sure you can!" Beast Boy said with a smile. "And now we have backup, those dimension-master people. I'm sure they have something up their sleeves!"

Raven still looked unsure. "My father...Trigon is a powerful demon, it would take a lot to take him down, even if the Dimension-Masters are extremely powerful." Beast Boy pulled her into a comforting hug.

"Hey...We can take him, we did it before." He said soothingly. Raven looked up at him and gave a weak smile. They leaned in closer to one another, their lips were barely inches apart...

Then, the alarm sounded.

However, it wasn't the usual, 'something bad's happening in the city' alarm, it was the louder, sharper, and somehow sounding more urgent, 'we're being attacked' alarm. Beast Boy and Raven broke apart and looked at each other momentarily before releasing their grips and moving into action. They could continue later.

The rushed to the common room, expecting Robin with the team to be waiting for them. However, what they saw was far from what they expected. One of the large glass windows had been shattered and standing there, in the middle of all the broken glass, was none other than Slade himself, flanked by several sladebots.

"You," Robin growled. "What are you doing here?" He glanced to his sides briefly. Emmett was nowhere to be seen. _I should've known...Bastard._

"Fulfilling my end of the deal." Slade replied in his silky smooth voice and threw a vial of green substance at the Titans. The vial broke and shrouded them in a green mist. Beast Boy tried transforming into a cheetah to tackle the villain to the ground, but to his shock, he couldn't.

"My powers!" He exclaimed. "They're not working!" He quickly brought up every bit of training Phantom and Scavenger had given him and drew his hammer, adopting a combat stance.

"Mine neither," Raven said, sounding slightly worried.

"Me as well," Starfire said, though she wasn't worried, she still had her super-human strength to pummel the sladebots back into the spare parts that comprised them.

"Titans, go!" Robin shouted and threw a bladerang at one of the sladebots, impaling it and destroying it's vital components. The robot sparked, gave of a fizzling sound, then ceased to operate. Cyborg used his fists to smash two of them together, while Starfire simply punched them with all her might. Beast Boy randomly whacked any sladebot that got too close with his hammer, thanking the assassins for providing him with the weapon. He still wasn't used to it, but at least it worked.

Raven simply evaded all of the sladebots' slow and predictable attacks, drawing them closer to her team mates to allow them to finish them off. On occasion, she threw a few of her own punches and kicks, and while they were not as powerful as Robin's or Starfire's, they still did some damage.

However, it seemed as if for every robot that went down, four more took their place. Cyborg continued smashing them with his bare hands, but he could feel his human parts begin to feel tired. He picked one of the bots up, slammed it into another and activated his sonic cannon to wipe out a whole row of them at one go. They were being pushed back to the kitchen.

Robin continued to fight, even though he was beginning to tire and could feel his muscles screaming at him to stop. He ignored their pleas and kept using his bo staff to repel the sladebots. He caught one in the knee, causing it to fall on it's back. A quick smash into the head finished it off. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a cloud of green energy coalesce into the form of Emmett. He was holding a longsword in his hands.

"What I do, I can undo," He snarled and with a wave of his hand, the green energy was sucked out of the Titans and into his palm. Raven felt her powers returning to her, and as a test, she tried it out on a few sladebots. She lashed her hand out at them, and they were immediately shrouded in dark energy and thrown back into several more.

"What is the meaning of this?" Slade bellowed, sounding genuinely angry. "We had a deal!"

"It's off," Emmett replied coldly and advanced on the masked villain quickly with his sword raised. Slade blocked the blade with his staff, but only barely. Emmett didn't let up, though, and kept advancing with rapid sword strikes, each blow faster and harder to block than the last. "You have maybe ten years of villainy," Emmett said darkly. "I've got maybe a hundred, maybe five hundred, what hopes do you have of winning?"

Slade smiled, then lashed out with his foot, catching Emmett in the knee and knocking him to the ground. He slammed down with his staff, but luckily Emmett rolled away just in time. "Yes, but I have more combat experience," The masked villain mocked as Emmett quickly got to his feet. They both circled each other.

Robin saw Emmett fighting Slade and immediately wanted to switch places with the ex-Templar. Slade was his archenemy, and he wanted to be the one who disposed of him. That was the only person Robin seriously wanted to kill. He tried to cut a path through the sea of sladebots, aided by Cyborg and his sonic cannon, who cleared row after row of robots. Starfire used her starbolts to destroy several of the robots in the boy wonder's way, while Beast Boy and Raven simply destroyed any bot in sight, with the changeling using a gorilla form to smash several of the robots into tiny pieces and the sorceress using her powers to slam the bots into one another.

Emmett lashed out with his sword once again, but Slade blocked it and kicked him in the stomach, causing the ex-Templar to stagger back and clutch his abdomen with his free hand. Emmett recovered quickly enough and launched another series of attacks, but Slade was prepared and deflected each blow easily. From the corner of his eye, he could see Robin getting closer to Slade. The masked villain took this distraction to knock Emmett back, causing him to drop the sword.

Slade picked up the weapon and stood over the ex-Templar, pointing the blade at his throat. "I'm sorry our partnership has ended. Any last words?" He asked and added a little pressure, drawing blood.

"Yea," Emmett said and with a wave of his hand, opened a portal right next to Slade without him from knowing. "Let me know how hell feels like." Slade looked puzzled, but he didn't have time to react. Robin hit him hard with a flying kick to the face, making him lose balance and fall right into the portal. The masked Villain screamed as he fell into the dimensional gate. Emmett quickly sealed it and picked up his sword.

With their leader gone, the sladebots were easily defeated and destroyed by the Titans. They pushed the last wrecked robot out the open window. "Where'd you send Slade?" Robin asked as the Titans all fell back onto the couch to catch their breath.

Emmett shrugged. "Don't know. Could be back to his lair or to some weird dimension." He said, sounding tired. _I nearly lost, should practice more._ He made a mental note. Sheathing his sword, he tore open another portal, except with this one he knew where he would end up. "I'm not sure what's gonna happen next, but be careful," He warned and jumped into the portal. It sealed shut behind him.

However, luck seemed to be against Emmett. Rather than depositing Slade in the pool of lava he would have liked, the portal transported Slade to a place that would have been familiar to the ex-Templar. It was underground, and yet looked modern. An old man, maybe around sixty years old stood over the masked villain. Although his hair was graying and his skin slightly wrinkled, he still radiated an aura of authority and power.

"Hello there," He said, his voice deep and commanding. "I believe you're Slade. Take a seat and we can discuss what to do with that traitor."

**VvVvV**

"Do you really remember where the Assassin's hideout is?" Robin asked for the seventh time. The Titans were all in the T-Car, cruising around the city while following Beast Boy's supposedly accurate instructions to get to the Assassin's base.

"Due, I'm sure!" The changeling replied indignantly. He was sitting in the center, between Raven and Starfire.

"We've been out for almost two hours, and we still haven't found anything." Cyborg stated. "Maybe your head needs to be checked."

"It's a hideout, somehow I doubt they'll advertise it's location." Raven commented dryly.

Robin sighed and rubbed his head. "Alright, I recall it being near the docks. We should start-Cy! Over there!" He stopped mid-sentence and shouted, pointing in front of him. There, not too far in front and on the rooftops, was the blue-clad assassin. "Let's see if we can catch up to her." He ordered, remembering that that particular assassin was a female.

"The T-Car can't climb walls, we'll do better on foot." Cyborg said and got out of the car. The rest of the Titans followed.

"Raven, Star, see if you can track her down from the sky, Beast Boy, switch to your fastest aerial form and follow her!" Robin quickly gave the Titans their roles. "Cy and I will see if we can cut her off up ahead." The Titans nodded. Raven and Starfire immediately took to the skies, with Beast Boy in peregrine falcon form beside them. Cyborg and Robin got back into the T-Car and raced towards where they assumed the assassin was heading.

_Damn, she's fast._ Beast Boy thought as he and the girls flew after the assassin. She seemed to have a limitless endurance, jumping between buildings with ease and running extremely quickly without any hints of slowing down. Her bow was slung on her back, along with a quiver of arrows. Raven, tired of the chase, brought up a barrier of dark energy right in front of the assassin, blocking her path. "Nice!" Beast Boy exclaimed, but the celebration was premature as a tongue of flame sliced the air in front of him, causing him to yell out in surprise. He looked down and saw Tracker, mace out and fireballs formed in his hands. "Hey, friendly fire!" He shouted. But Tracker didn't seem to hear.

Tracked rejoined the blue-assassin and they both adopted combat stances as the three Titans landed to face them. "Dude!" Beast Boy shouted at Tracker rather angrily. "The hell was that for? You nearly burnt off my eyebrows!"

The red assassin shrugged. "Didn't see, sorry, man." He said flatly then crossed his arms. "What do you guys want?" He asked in an unfriendly voice. The blue-assassin, whose name was Ranger, as Beast Boy had just remembered, stood next to Tracker with her hand lightly touching the hilt of her shortsword sheathed at the hip. It was only at this point that Beast Boy realized the assassins might consider them as enemies.

"One of the Templars wants to defect, Trigon's-" Beast Boy saw Raven wince slightly as he mentioned her father's name. "-Coming back, and we need your help." Beast Boy explained as simply as he could. To his surprise, Tracker's expression turned from flat to mildly amused when he mentioned Trigon's name.

Tracker looked at them with a questioning look. "How can we trust you?" He asked warily.

"You can't." Raven replied. "You just have to."

Starfire nodded in agreement. "Yes, friends, we need your help!"

Ranger looked at Tracker and shrugged. The red assassin sighed. "I don't know," He said, as if replying to Ranger, who had barely said a word. The blue assassin folded her arms and looked at Tracker with a questioning look. "Fine," Tracker said and sighed, then turned back to the three Titans. "Look, I don't know much, but Phantom would, if it's anything to do with that demon." He said. "Take us to the rest of the team, I'll tell Phantom to meet us there."

**VvVvV**

"Trigon escaped." Phantom said flatly as the three assassins and the Titans stood around the T-Car on a sidewalk. They were attracting a lot of attention to themselves. It wasn't everyday you saw the Titans conversing with a trio of oddly dressed and well-armed people. "I should have invested in better security." The black-and-white assassin said and sighed. Noticing the confused expressions of the Titans, he continued, "I was in charge of Trigon's little prison. I thought my guys could handle it, but..."

"Eh, shit happens." Tracker said and shrugged. "Ah well, it's just another arrest, right?"

Robin looked at them with a quizzical look. For two people talking about a demon who had the capacity to destroy entire worlds, they were oddly relaxed. "I fail to see how you two can be so casual talking about this." He commented. Inside, he was happy that all animosity between the two groups were gone. They were going to need all the help they could get.

"I had a run in with him before," Phantom said, to everyone's surprise. "What? You don't think I was born an assassin, did you?" He asked rhetorically and raised an eyebrow. "I used to be-"

"Don't tell them," Tracker interrupted and glared at his friend.

"I think I should, if they're going to trust our help," Phantom countered. Without waiting for a reply, he continued, "Okay, this is going to be a shocker, so be prepared." The Titans nodded and Robin gestured for him to continue. Tracker sighed and leaned against a wall, rubbing the bridge of his nose, with Ranger next to him, looking at the scene with interest.

"I used to be...Or, I still am, the Angel of death." Phantom revealed rather anti-climatically. "Wait," He said and held a hand up to prevent Robin from speaking up. "Before you ask why I'm so special, Tracker there is the guardian of his own dimension. We all are. We just don't need to be there 24/7."

"So...You're like the grim reaper?" Beast Boy asked, still recoiling from the shock.

Phantom gave a thin smile. "No, the Grim Reaper collects souls. I get to decided whether their time is up or not. Although it's not my own decision. I have superiors as well." He explained, then noticed the dazed expression of the Titans. "Are you guys okay?" He asked.

"Yea, yea," Robin said. "It's just really...Wow. Angel of Death, huh?"

"Why does everyone get so excited about that title?" Tracker asked, sounding envious. "It's not like Angel of Depression is any less awesome, huh?" He said and grinned beneath his bandana.

"You guys are like...Angels, or somethin'?" Cyborg asked. "Man, that has got to be super cool!"

"In title, yes. In practice, no." Phantom replied. "We're not about to grow wings if that's what you're wondering. We're just awarded these titles." He stretched his arms, then turned to leave. "Anyway, we'll keep an eye out for Trigon. He appears, we'll take him down." He said casually. "Let's go." He gestured to Tracker and Ranger to follow him. He ran towards a wall, but then suddenly slowed down and stopped, as if he forgot something. "Oh, you asked my name before." He said, as if it suddenly occurred to him. "It's Szakal."

"Haeskella here." Tracker said. He pointed to the blue assassin. "That's Räv." She gave a shy wave. Without another word, the three assassins ran up the wall and climbed onto the rooftops, as they usually did.

The Titans got back into the T-Car. If what the assassins' said was right, they had absolutely nothing to be worried about. But they couldn't help but feel rather scared of the outcome if the assassins were wrong.

**VvVvV**

Emmett crawled slowly towards the abandoned factory where he had confronted Slade for the first time. If his dimension-master powers were right, that was the most likely spot of Trigon's entrance. He had removed all his Templar equipment, except his sword. He decided to look like an assassin, and donned a grey hoodie with white clothing underneath. Licking his lips, he sprinted across the open ground and took cover behind a wall.

_If Trigon's gonna come through here, I want to know,_ He thought to himself as he took out a small metallic disk-like object. It would detect any dimensional anomalies, such as portals and trigger an alarm that Emmett wired up in his temporary dwelling, a deserted apartment block. He walked towards the center of the building and placed the disk behind a few crates. It had an effective radius of one kilometer, and the sensors bypassed any obstacle, so he was sure if Trigon appeared, he would know.

Before he left, he fixed a few rectangular silver bars on several of the pillars of the factory. _Not much, but it should weaken him._ Emmett, deciding that his work was done, ran towards the exit of the factory. He was stopped cold in his tracks by a long metallic staff pointed at his neck. "Slade," He spat. "Don't you already have a teenager for an archnemesis?" He asked mockingly.

"I found a new one." The masked villain replied evenly. He was alone, no sladebots this time. Emmett immediately knew what he wanted. He drew his longsword and adopted a fighting stance.

Slade charged, unwilling to give any quarter.

END

So..How was it? Okay? Terrible? IMO it's one of the longest chapters I've ever written, and it doesn't look right...But eh, I'd like you comments.

Thanks.

~Schizo


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